


Alchemist meet Agents, Again

by Fullmetal_Bitch



Series: Alchemists meet Agents [2]
Category: Criminal Minds (US TV), Fullmetal Alchemist - All Media Types, NCIS
Genre: Al's scared of Izumi, Dimension Travel, Ed Swears a Lot, Ed is Iron Man, Everyone thinks Ed is precious, Everyone's scared of Izumi, Except Mustang, Except Sig, Fighting, Garcia is happy to have Ed back, Gen, Gracia & Elysia mentioned, Harding (original character) mentioned, Hawkeye will probably shoot him, He thinks Ed's a brat, I dunno how to tag, Lots of Original Characters - Freeform, Mustang's scared of paperwork, They take him shopping, Truth isn't to blame, Winry mentioned, a bit of blood and stuff, for once, he's not wrong, she's still scary
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-20
Updated: 2019-01-15
Packaged: 2019-09-23 04:12:59
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 87,968
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17073248
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Fullmetal_Bitch/pseuds/Fullmetal_Bitch
Summary: Edward and Mustang find themselves back in another dimension but this time they're in a new city with new people and facing another rogue alchemist, only this one is out for their blood. With Truth not being involved, they must figure out how to take down the alchemist and get home. New friends and old come together to help them but will it be enough?Story is fully written so updates will be every few days.





	1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1-**

Edward swore as he was forced to jump to his left while in a flat out run to avoid the bullet aimed his way from the criminal he was pursuing. He rolled with his jump with a well practised move and continued his chase, barely sparing a worried thought at the warmth he felt running down his left arm. He probably nicked it when he'd dodged and it didn't feel life-threatening so he didn't care. From his right he could see someone catching up with him and a quick glance confirmed that Alphonse had managed to catch up finally. He couldn't have stopped the pang of worry that ran through him as he and Al ran side by side. It had only been a month since Al was released from the hospital and his rehab doctor had cleared him for missions only a couple of days ago so Ed knew he was being stupid worrying about his physical health but he couldn't help it. He'd only gotten his brother his physical body back six months ago and you didn't need a medical licence to realise exactly how bad off Al was. The image of his little brother's skeletal body, hooked up to a dozen machines and so weak he could barely open his eyes, let alone speak, was something that would haunt Ed for the rest of his life and was a new feature in his recurring nightmares.

"Brother, he's gone!" Al gasped in surprise as he slid to a stop. Ed halted his own run as he looked around, searching for any movement to indicate where their target had gone. Slowing his heavy breathing down so he could listen for any off noise, he barely notice Al mimicking him. After a tense thirty seconds of waiting and watching, Ed let out a frustrated groan as he failed to see or hear anything that pointed to where the criminal was hiding. Al let out a similar noise as he failed to come up with anything and Ed used the opportunity presented to give his brother a once-over. When Al had been hospitalised he had hair as long as Ed's own and he was trembling from the effort it took to breath. Now he had his hair cut short, like it was before that night, and he was only breathing heavy because of the chase. He had a few scratches and his clothes were filthy but he had no major injuries and Ed could see that the strain of the fight and following chase was only showing only slightly more than it was for Ed.

"Well, fuck." Ed swore as he gave one last look at the surrounding warehouses for any movement. "I do not want to have to go back to Colonel Bastard and tell him we lost this arsehole." Ed pointedly ignored the exasperated look his brother sent his way. Mustang had assigned them this mission only that morning. Jarrod Moore was a 24 year old known low-level criminal. He'd been linked to four robberies over the last month, three home robberies and one business robbery. When Mustang had given him the mission, he'd been confused. Moore wasn't military and he wasn't an alchemist so he questioned why he was being sent after him. Evidently, one of the homes robbed belonged to a General and he'd requested the case be handed over to Mustang to be solved when the business had been robbed. Mustang had then given it to Edward, much to the blondes disgust. Moore had been identified by one of the police from the security cameras set up in the alcohol store that had been hit. It was pure luck that Ed and Al had been near the jewelry store Moore had robbed barely twenty minutes ago when they saw him tear out of the store. After leaving Al to check on anyone who was in the store, Ed tore after Moore. Now they were in the middle of the warehouse district and Moore had disappeared.

"Brother, you know he's a Brigadier-General now. I know you know that because I've heard him correct you a dozen times now. You were there when he got promoted after you two got back from your little adventure." Alphonse reminded him and Ed's response was to roll his eyes.

"I like the fact that your problem is the rank I used, not what I called him." Ed teased lightly. The familiar banter was a lot more enjoyable now that Al's voice didn't ring with the tinny undertone it used too.

"Besides, Mustang won't blame us for losing him." Al continued like he hadn't heard what his elder brother said. "I think Moore was intentionally leading us this way so he could escape. I think he planned an escape route before he tried robbing that jewelry store and it required him being in this area." Ed thought about what his brother said and something clicked in his mind.

"That's why he robbed that jewelry store! It's the closest one to this area. I thought it was weird he didn't try robbing the one on the main street. Everyone knows it's bigger and has more valuable goods. The reward for successfully robbing that one would outweigh the risks, especially since his method he used would've meant he could have been successful at that store too. I just thought he was too much of a coward to try." Ed exclaimed and Al nodded in agreement. He'd been thinking the same thing. Ed sighed as he shifted slightly on his feet. "We'd better go and report back. Might as well get it over and done with. I could go for some food now. That dick interrupted us on our way to lunch." Ed complained and Al rolled his eyes. Of course his brother's only complaint is missing lunch. Al had only taken one step to the side so he could follow his brother when there was a loud crack and the ground behind and to the side of Al exploded as the bullet fired at him buried itself in the concrete.

Ed was the first of the two of them to react. Grabbing his brother, he shoved him behind himself and track the trajectory of the bullet back to a warehouse in front of and to the right of where he stood now. He caught the noise of a gun being cocked again in the complete silence that had followed the gun shot and he took off for the warehouse, dragging Al with him. They'd barely burst through the door on the ground level when they heard someone running above them. Gesturing for Al to stay quiet and follow, they made their way up. It was a three level warehouse and from the noise, Moore had holed himself up on the third level. It took them barely any time to clear the second level. The warehouse was empty and there weren't any rooms built so it was a simple case of checking behind the support pillars before moving up to the third level. They made it through the door and stopped short when they spotted Moore standing in the middle of the floor, completely in the open. On the floor next to him was a revolver. An empty one from the look of it. So that meant they didn't have to worry about being shot.

"Give it up, Moore. You had a slight advantage with the gun and you've lost it now." Ed pointed out, striding forward until he was barely five metres away, Al right behind him. Moore sneered at them both and the brothers exchanged a glance.

"You think you've caught me?" Ed rolled his eyes. Moore sounded like he was quoting every bad villain in the stupid crime book Al had been reading while he was the armour. "I don't think you realise how wrong you are."

"Seriously, man?" Ed sighed, getting annoyed now. "Just give it up. You're out-matched and out-classed here. Come in quietly and you may win some points in your favour. Or don't. I really don't mind putting you through the wall. I don't like people who take cheap shots at someone else and I especially don't like it when that person is my brother." Ed snarled at him. Moore started cackling and Ed would never admit to anyone that the sound had him step back in shock. He and Al exchanged glances while Moore laughed.

"You're angry that I took a shot at your brother?!  _Your_  brother?! What about  _my_  brother?!" The anger Moore exhibited took both Elrics by surprise but they were more confused by what the unhinged man was implying.

"You don't have a brother." Was all Ed could say as he watched the man's face start turning red with all of his rage.

"We may not have been related by blood but Thomas Harding was my brother in every other way and you killed him!" Edward flinched violently as the man's screeched words hit him. Harding was the first person Ed had killed intentionally. While no one outside of Mustang's team, Alphonse or the two men themselves knew anything about their trip to a different dimension and the actual events that took place there, they did have to give some sort of report. Thanks to Mustang being a manipulative bastard, he was able to forge travel documents that showed them chasing after Harding to some small, insignificant town so they used the documents to provide some sort of cover about where they'd been. Aside from location, travel and the kind of place the final battle between them and Harding took, the report was written truthfully. They hunted Harding down and found he was in possession of a fake Philosopher's Stone. The subsequent fight had ended with the Stone rebounding on Harding and them killing him by trapping him and burning him alive. There was no mention of America, the FBI's BAU team that helped the two Alchemists out nor the Truth in any report, official or otherwise.

"He'd committed several crimes, including murdering people, and he refused to come in quietly. I did what I had to do to protect myself and others around me." Edward told him. He knew his words had that tired overtone to them, like he'd repeated them often or that he didn't care and, judging from how his face turned from red to purple, Moore had taken the tone to mean he didn't care.

"I know what really happened! I know you didn't murder him in Amestris! I know he was in another dimension! And you and that bastard flame alchemist hunted him down and murdered him like he was some animal!" Moore was screeching so loudly he was barely understandable. Al and Ed's faces paled. Moore noticed and his grin turned triumphant and sadistic. "Oh yes. I knew all about it. Tommy came to me when he found those pretty red stones. As soon as we realised what they were and what they could do, Tommy had an idea. He told me he'd heard rumours about how the Elric brothers were able to do alchemy without arrays. He'd heard whispers about an all-powerful being called Truth who guarded the Gate of Knowledge that one could pass through for the right price. So he read every book he could, every scrap of paper that had sort of information on it about Truth and came across something interesting. There were theories hundreds of years ago about how Truth could grant passage to different dimensions. There were theories even more recent about travelling to another dimension with alchemy alone but anyone who tried, well they weren't too successful." Moore's eyes glazed over as he lost himself in his memories and Ed got this horrible urge to run as far away as possible but his legs refused to move. He could feel Al trembling slightly behind him and he reached back blindly to grab his brother's arm. Moore continued talking. "Well, we had the stones and we knew what they could do. I was supposed to go with him but Tommy said he wouldn't risk me getting hurt or killed if it went wrong somehow. I was supposed to wait a month for him to come back and get me. But you and that flame alchemist somehow got over there and you killed him before he could!" Moore's eyes had snapped back onto Ed and the blonde knew something was wrong. Moore's eyes didn't scream unhinged anymore. They looked like he had a plan for his revenge and Ed didn't want to stick around for it.

"Al, we need to go." He whispered, using his grip on his brother's arm to start pushing him back. Al moved without protest, slightly pulling Ed with him. They moved slowly so as to not attract Moore's attention to their retreat. They weren't quick enough though when Moore suddenly knelt down and alchemic energy sparked along the ground to light up an array they were both standing in.

"I bet you didn't realise I had a slight talent for alchemy. I wasn't anywhere near my brother's level and, if I'm being honest, a child would be able to out perform me on their best day but you don't need to be a genius at alchemy to be able to use one of these." A glint of red drew their gaze to his hand and Ed's heart leapt into his throat as he realised what he was looking at. A Philosopher's Stone. When he was done with this bastard, he was going to create a world-wide array that would destroy all of those blasted stones. He glanced at the array he and Al were standing in but he didn't know what it was for and that made him more scared than anything else. If he didn't know what it did, he couldn't counter it. The array took up the entire room and they were still inside of it. Ed turned around and started shoving Al with purpose. "You and Mustang are going to pay for what you did to my brother, Elric! Good luck coming back from this!" Purple energy sparked and raced around the array while the brothers ran to get out but Ed knew both of them wouldn't make it but he could at least make it so Alphonse did. Using his momentum and all of his energy, he shoved Al hard enough to send him flying and he cleared the array with a heartbeat to spare. Al looked back at him, shock and despair on his face.

"You take this bastard down, Al! Get him back to Mustang!" Ed ordered and the last thing he heard before everything went black was Al's desperate cry of his name. The first thing he felt when he opened his eyes next was the sensation of falling. He opened his eyes just in time to see a bitumen car park and four surprised faces before he hit the ground.

* * *

 

_At the same time, in America_

"Good morning, McGee." A woman's voice called out to him as he made his way from the elevator to his desk, coffee in one hand and his backpack containing everything needed for his job slung over his opposite shoulder. He quickly identified his greeter as Ziva David, their once Mossad Liaison, now Probationary NCIS Field Agent. He returned her smile quickly and offered his own greeting.

"Morning, Ziva. You're in early." He noted as he realised she had already settled in for the morning and had made it through several pieces of paperwork. It wasn't unusual for her to beat himself and DiNozzo in but she had been in for at least two hours from the looks of it and that was unusual.

"I have a doctor's appointment this morning and figured I'd come in earlier to complete what work I can so I have the time to spare." She replied as he dumped his bag next to his desk and sat in his chair.

"Doctor's appointment? Are you alright?" He asked, concerned as he switched on his monitors and started up his computers.

"I'm fine. It's just a check up for that injury I got a couple of weeks ago." She said dismissively yet secretly pleased McGee sounded so concerned for her health.

"Your shoulder injury from when you and Tony crashed the car chasing after the drugged-up Petty Officer?" McGee questioned, relieved it was nothing major. That crash had hospitalised both of the Agents and the Petty Officer in question. Gibbs was not impressed with the damage done to his sedan but even McGee could see how relieved he was when they got news Tony had woken up after being unconscious for nearly six hours. Ziva had been discharged after a nights stay while Tony had to stay for two nights before the doctors would clear him. He'd been required to take a further three days off by Vance and Ziva assigned desk duty until her shoulder had healed from the bruising. She'd been out of the sling since Tony came back and today she would hopefully be cleared to return to active duty. McGee was worried she'd go crazy if she had to spend another day strapped to her desk. Ziva nodded in answer. "When is it? Do you need a lift?" He asked and Ziva gave him a nice smile. Nice smiles were good from her. It meant she probably wouldn't stab him for asking.

"I'll be fine. If I can drive myself to work, I can drive myself to the doctor." She checked the clock before making a surprised noise. "Actually, I need to leave now if I want to make it there in time. Let Gibbs know I'll be back in two hours." She said as she gathered what she needed and left once McGee assured her he would. She waited for the elevator to arrive and the doors opened to reveal her second co-worker, Anthony DiNozzo. He gave her a confused look as he took off his sunglasses and stepped out of the elevator so she could step in.

"Where are you headed?" He asked as he spun to keep his eyes on her.

"Doctor's appointment. I'll be back soon." She said, pressing the button for the ground floor and giving DiNozzo a reassuring smile when she spotted his concerned face before the doors slid shut. DiNozzo headed for his desk and dropped his gear in its usual spot before facing McGee.

"Is she okay?" The older man asked and McGee debated not answering or telling Tony it wasn't his business but the look of genuine concern on Tony's face made him tell the truth.

"She's fine. It's a check up appointment for her shoulder." Relief swept across his face for a second before he schooled his expression to resemble something less caring.

"Oh, right. Forgot about that." He said casually but McGee knew what Tony was thinking. He had been the one driving the car and even though it was the Petty Officer who crashed into them, Tony still blamed himself for putting one of his team members in harms way.

"She'll be fine, Tony. Remember yesterday when she threw that pencil at you because you wouldn't shut up?" A look of only slightly exaggerated fear flicked across Tony's face as he recalled the memory and he glanced at the hole the pencil had made when it buried itself in the wall behind his right shoulder.

"You're right. She'll be cleared, no worries." He said, finally sitting at his desk and starting up his computers. McGee chuckled to himself as he let the silence between them stand until Gibbs walked in an hour later.

"Where's Ziva?" Was the first question the grey-haired man asked as he sat behind his own computers and looked around his bullpen.

"Morning, Boss." DiNozzo was the quickest to speak up. "She's at her doctor's appointment for her shoulder check up."

"She said she'll be back in a couple of hours and she left about an hour ago." McGee answered the silent follow up question. Gibbs simply nodded before taking a sip of his coffee and getting through some of his outstanding paperwork as well. The next hour was relatively quiet, with the exception of DiNozzo and McGee bantering or asking actual questions about details they needed clarifying on a case. Ziva turned up ten minutes after her self-assigned deadline and headed straight for her boss.

"Cleared for active duty. Here's my doctor's note." She said as she handed the piece of paper to him. He took it with a nod and placed it aside to file away later, not even glancing at it first to make sure she was cleared. He knew Ziva knew better than to lie to him about something like this. Barely five minutes after Ziva had settled herself back at her desk, exchanging some snide comments with DiNozzo and civil ones with McGee, did Gibbs' phone ring.

"Gibbs." He answered as he placed the phone to his ear. He noted his team pause in their work as they waited to see if it was a call out. After the person on the other end of the call finished speaking he informed them they were on their way and hung up. "Grab your gear. Got a dead Navy Lieutenant." He'd barely started talking before they moved into action and were at his side by the time he was halfway to the elevator.

They left the building and were halfway to the cars and the van when a flash of what looked like lightening, even though it was clear day, drew their attention to their left. As quick as it appeared, the light disappeared and something red and black was falling from about six or so metres above them. The object landed only a couple of metres away from them and it took them no time to realise they were looking at a person. All fours had their guns drawn and aimed at the blonde teenager before anyone could blink. The boy's eyes flicked open as he let out a small whine of pain before gingerly sitting up. He mustn't have been too hurt because he was quick to jump to his feet and look around, spotting the team quickly. He glanced at the weapons and immediately moved into a defensive position before looking at them all. Three team members were shocked enough at his eye colour for it to show visibly before they could school their expressions. Gibbs' eyes squinted slightly as he watched the boy take in his surroundings as best he could without any of them leaving his sight.

"Who are you? Where am I?" The boy demanded as he kept his defensive position. Gibbs watched as a trail of blood ran down his neck and took in the rest of his appearance. He had blonde, almost golden, hair and matching eyes. He looked about 15 and his clothes were a mess. His right red jacket sleeve was torn enough for the black one to peek through and his left glove was half-soaked with blood, the rips through his jacket sleeves indicated an injury on that arm. Despite his disheveled and injured appearance, the boy looked alert, confused, angry and scared, though that last one was very well hidden. The sound of footsteps crunching on the gravel behind the boy had him swinging around to face the new threat. The four agents looked up to see who the newcomer was and were shocked and on high alert when they realised it was Director Vance. They gripped their guns tighter, keeping them trained steadily on the boy who was quick enough to put himself between two cars so he could see them all at the same time. Vance's hands were up in the universal sign of 'I'm not a threat' but the boy didn't seem overly calmed by that. "Who are you and where am I?" The blonde asked again, sounding a lot angrier now. Vance was the one who spoke.

"My name is Leon Vance. I'm the director of NCIS. These are Agents McGee, DiNozzo, Gibbs and David. You're at NCIS Headquarters, here in Washington, DC. What's your name? Why are you here?" Vance's voice remained calm and level through the introductions and explanation. The gold eyes squinted slightly as he seemed to assess whether the dark-skinned man was being truthful or not.

"Edward. I don't, I don't know why I'm here. I shouldn't be here. This shouldn't of happened. I should be at home with my brother." His voice sounded so young and worried that it took them by surprise in comparison to how he was before. "Washington, DC? That's in America, right?" He asked and the agents exchanged glances before Vance answered again.

"Yes. Where are you from? Maybe we can help you get home." Vance asked and they were admittedly startled when the boy, Edward, chuckled humourlessly.

"I highly doubt that." He sounded so sure that even Gibbs looked at him worriedly. He still hadn't moved out of his defensive position and Vance wasn't the only one to notice they were starting to draw attention from others around them. The attention from the crowd was making Edward even more tense which was something none of them wanted. Vance strode over so he was standing behind Gibbs' team but facing the crowd.

"This doesn't concern you. Go back to work." He ordered, appearing unconcerned with what was going on behind his and his tone had the undertone that promised swift consequences to any who disobeyed him. The few people who had gathered to watch quickly scattered. Edward's body loosened slightly but he was still apprehensive and ready to fight if need be. Well, one problem solved.

"Why don't you come in?" Vance gestured to the building behind him as he faced Edward. "I promise nothing will happen to you. You can get cleaned up and we can discuss your situation." Edward looked almost convinced but he still looked like he wanted to ask some questions. A slight glance between Gibbs and Vance, which had Vance give a slight nod, had Gibbs lower his gun and holster it. A moments hesitation had the three others follow suit. The lack of immediate danger had Ed relax his defensive stance but no one was foolish enough to think he wasn't ready to fight if he thought he needed too. It took only a couple of minutes of silence for Ed to ask something that had been nagging at him.

"What's NCIS?" The question prompted one of the younger agents to groan and let out an exasperated 'really?' before the older man slapped him upside the head, causing both Edward and an abashed DiNozzo to flinch.

"It stands for Naval Criminal Investigative Services. We deal with cases involving or caused by any naval officers, their family or our own agents." Vance explained as simply as possible. Edward seemed to be contemplating something.

"So you're like the FBI, only for the Navy? So you're on the same side as them?" DiNozzo looked like he wanted to comment but a quick glance from his boss had him rethinking that idea.

"More or less." Gibbs was the one to comment and Ed's eyes snapped to him, suddenly cautious again.

"What's that supposed to mean?" He demanded and Gibbs gave him his trademark look that had most people looking away and apologising. The kid just glared back and Gibbs was amused to see his team exchange glances of awe and fear for the kid.

"It means that, unless we get in a jurisdictional pissing match, we're on the same side." Vance answered, beating Gibbs to the punch. Edward's eyes were back on him now and Vance made himself keep his expression neutral.

"If I go in there," Ed pointed to the building after a few seconds, "can I call someone?" The question was cautious, almost like he expected the answer to be 'no'.

"Only after you've cleaned up and been checked out by a doctor." Vance negotiated and Edward eventually nodded and took a careful step forward. When none of the agents moved in anyway to stop him, he moved a lot more confidently though the way he held himself only told them he was ready to bolt if he had too. Vance was leading them to the building while two agents, McGee and David if Ed remembered correctly, flanked him and the other two agents flanked their director. No one spoke until they were in the elevator.

"DiNozzo, escort Edward to the showers. McGee, find him some clothes and meet them there. Ziva, you're with me. Leon, you'll need to assign another team to the case we were just given." Edward watched as Vance's eyebrow raised in reaction to someone giving him orders but he never said anything. The elevator stopped and they exited into one of the most horrifically painted rooms Edward had ever had the misfortune of being in. The orange was literally an attack on his eyes. Someone gripped his flesh arm, luckily, to draw his attention. Unluckily they managed to grip the part of his arm that had a large cut on it and Ed couldn't stop himself from wrenching his arm out of their grip nor could he stop the hiss of pain that escaped.

"Sorry. Showers are this way." DiNozzo apologised, grimacing at the pain he'd caused the boy. Edward glared at him until he started leading him to the showers. Once inside, DiNozzo grabbed him a towel, a washcloth and some other toiletries. "Showers are there. McGee will be here with some spare clothes for you shortly. I'll have him put them on that bench there. We'll be just outside when you're ready. Also, sorry about grabbing your arm earlier. I didn't realise you were hurt." Edward looked at him and could only find sincerity in his expression.

"Don't worry about it." He eventually grunted. "I've had worse." That did not seem to reassure the agent, if the look on his face was any indication but Ed deliberately turned his back on him before he could ask any questions. DiNozzo took the hint and Ed heard the door shut behind him. Ed stripped himself bare and turned the water on. He fiddled with the temperature and hopped in once it was perfect. He drew the shower curtain shut so he had some privacy and rinsed himself off before using the soap and cloth DiNozzo had given him to actually clean himself properly. The outside door opened and Edward paused, coiled to attack if he had too, relaxing only slightly when McGee's voice sounded.

"Edward? I have some clothes for you. Is it okay if I come in and put them on the bench for you?" Ed liked that he'd asked instead of just barging in like some military officers were prone to doing.

"Yeah. Thanks, Agent McGee." He said as he listened carefully to the man's footsteps. He heard something being dropped onto the bench before McGee spoke again.

"It's no problem. Just let us know when you're done." Edward gave an agreeing hum as he listened to him leave and sighed lightly when the door shut once more. Only once that had happened did Ed allow himself to think about the situation he was in. He was back in America, only this time he was in a completely new city and surrounded by completely new people. His instincts screamed at him to run, to try and find any of the BAU members he knew but his gut was telling him he could trust these five as well. The more worrying discrepancies were that he was completely alone and had absolutely no way back to Amestris unless he used an array to get to Truth and who knows what that god-like bastard would demand as payment? Ed shook his head. No, going to Truth was an absolute last resort. He hoped that the fact Al hadn't appeared with him meant his little brother was safe and he'd taken down Moore and was with Mustang right now, trying to figure out how this whole mess happened. Mustang and Al were his best hope for getting home.

He shook his head once more. Thinking about this wasn't helping him right now so instead he focused on his body, specifically his injuries. The cut to his arm was long and jagged but not deep so he didn't need stitches. He had a collection of bruises that accompanied his fight with Moore and from the feel of the wound and his head, his head injury was nothing major. He finished washing his hair before he shut the water off and grabbed the towel from where he left it. Quickly drying himself off, he pressed the towel to his wounded arm and was pleased that the wound hadn't started bleeding again when he took it away. He dressed himself in his boxers before donning on the clothes McGee had found for him. He was surprised they fit him well enough. The pants were a little long and he had to tighten the drawstring and the shirt was maybe a size or two too large but he was clean and comfortable. He put his boots back on and finger combed his hair before braiding it back. He picked up his own gloves and slipped his right one on before looking at the bloody, filthy mess that was his left one. Placing it on the bench, Ed took a deep breath. One of the things that occurred to him was he might not have his alchemy anymore. When he'd turned up in America the first time, Truth had said he'd still have his alchemy. The energy around him felt like a weaker version of the energy back home but that didn't guarantee he could still use it. Letting out his breath, he took another deep one and prepared his cleaning array. Clapping his hands, he heard the unique and familiar ring his clap made and pressed a hand to the glove. He had never been more relieved to see the familiar blue crackle of energy that appeared than he was now. A second later he put on his now clean glove and gathered the rest of his clothing. He looked around and found a bag big enough for his stuff before he opened the door up, startling the door agents who were standing outside.

"You look better." DiNozzo commented, giving Ed his trademark cocky grin and Ed was surprised to find himself smiling back. "Let's get you down to Ducky so he can check you out." Ed followed the two of them.

"Who?" He queried and McGee beat DiNozzo to the explanation.

"Doctor Mallard. He's technically the coroner but he is a licensed doctor and Gibbs decided you'd be seeing him rather than bringing someone else in. Gibbs and Ducky are close friends so Gibbs trusts his judgement." Ed simply grunted in acknowledgement. Gibbs seemed like a man whose respect you had to work hard for gaining so if this Ducky had it than Edward would probably be better off seeing him than not. They were in the elevator again and Ed soon found himself stepping out of it and into a sterile room with three steel slabs set up in the middle of it. There were steel doors set on one wall that Ed realised would open to the compartments that stored any corpses Doctor Mallard had worked on. A large wash basin and numerous protective gear were on another wall. A set of doors that led somewhere else, some glass-door refrigeration units that held vials, jars and chemicals. A desk and office chair were sitting against the wall closest to the door. The doors to the elevator behind him dinged and Ed spun around at the noise, immediately slipping into his fighting stance, only relax slightly at the sight of the kind-eyed, elderly man who was accompanied by the two missing team members. Vance wasn't with them.

"Hello there. I'm Doctor Mallard but you can call me Ducky. You must be young Edward." Ed jolted at his voice. He sounded very different to the others though Ed was quick to realise why. The man must've come from a different country and had an accent. He offered his own polite greeting and the man lead them into the room Edward was just scoping out before patting one of the steel slabs, an obvious gesture for Ed to sit there, which he did. "Yes, Gibbs was just telling me about how you got here. I'll admit that I'm curious. I've seen and heard of many strange things in my time but I've never heard of someone arriving quite the way you did. Now, where are you injured?"

"Left arm. It's just a scratch. Won't require stitches. Back of my head. Doesn't feel too bad. I've been hit harder and I know the procedure for a suspected concussion." Ed told him, slightly curtly, and the elderly man looked both surprised at his own assessment and understanding about his tone. The team members seemed more offended by it than the doctor. "I don't like doctors. The only reason I haven't left is because I agreed to this. You're just lucky that man hadn't tried getting me to agree to go to a hospital." Ed didn't know why he felt the need to explain himself but he did it anyway. The team looked slightly less scandalised. Doctor Mallard's expression softened into one that told Ed he wasn't being judged.

"It's okay, Edward. Completely understandable. You'd be hard-pressed finding anyone who didn't have a group of people they didn't like being around. Can I see your arm please?" Ed pulled up his sleeve and the cut was revealed. It ran from just above his elbow and stopped about a third of the way down his forearm. None of the agents expressions gave anything away but Ed could tell from their eyes they thought it was pretty bad. Ducky clicked his tongue and grabbed some supplies before getting to work. "You're right. This doesn't need stitches thankfully. I'll clean it out and wrap it up for you. This will sting." He warned as he applied the disinfectant. Ed barely flinched. Once Ducky was done, Ed pulled his sleeve back down.

"What happened?" Gibbs asked as Ducky had Ed hop off the table and sit on his chair so he was at a better level for him to examine his head. Ed considered him for a moment before answering.

"I was in pursuit of someone wanted in connection to some minor burglary charges. He shot at me. I dodged. Must've cut myself on something when I hit the ground. Hit my head on the ground when I appeared in your car park." Gibbs was the only one who didn't look surprised at his explanation.

"So you're a cop? You look barely old enough to be out school, let alone on the force!" DiNozzo commented and Ed glared at him.

"I'm 17 and I'm not a cop. I'm military." Ed snapped at him defensively. DiNozzo looked almost shocked, though whether it was his tone or answer, Ed didn't know.

"Which branch of the military?" Gibbs asked, voice calm and curious. Ed's eyes slid back to him.

"None of yours." Was his reply. Gibbs didn't comment on the lack of answer but he did narrow his eyes as he studied the young man in front of him while he was being distracted by Ducky. He was good at evading questions he didn't want to answer yet he was defensive about his age when DiNozzo questioned him and Gibbs got the feeling he hadn't actually meant to let the military comment slip. He pulled himself out of his thoughts just as Ducky finished giving Edward medical instructions the kid looked like he'd heard a dozen times before.

"Thanks, Ducky. Let's go." Gibbs said as he left the coroner and headed for the elevator, trusting the others were close behind him. He pressed the button for the floor the conference room was on and let the other four people pile in. He led them down the corridors and opened the door up to the conference room, letting Edward go in first to get his bearings. Ziva and DiNozzo followed him in but Gibbs stopped McGee before he could. "Go get Vance." He ordered and McGee nodded before heading to the director's office and Gibbs entered the room himself.

"I wanna make that phone call now." Ed said once he'd given the place a once over. Gibbs saw Ziva and Tony exchange a look and glance his way. The man himself simply nodded and gestured to the phone sitting on the table. Ed reached for it hesitantly, like he expected it to be a trap.

"You need to dial '9' for the call to go to anyone outside of this building." DiNozzo told him and Ed nodded his thanks before dialing the number he'd committed to memory the first time he ended up in America. There were three rings before a chirpy voice on the other end answered.

"This is FBI Technical Analyst Penelope Garcia speaking." Ed let out a breath he didn't even know he was holding.

"Miss Garcia? It's me, Ed."


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Edward and Mustang find themselves back in another dimension but this time they're in a new city with new people and facing another rogue alchemist, only this one is out for their blood. With Truth not being involved, they must figure out how to take down the alchemist and get home. New friends and old come together to help them but will it be enough?

Penelope Garcia's day had started out how it normally did. She had her morning shower, got ready for work, made herself a coffee in her travel mug and headed to work. By the time she got in, she'd finished her first coffee so she stopped by the break room near her teams bullpen to grab a second one. It also gave her the opportunity to greet whichever members of her team were also in as early as herself. Hotch and Rossi were always in this early and this morning she was greeted by Reid, Prentiss and Morgan. JJ was no where to be seen but Garcia spotted new files on everyone's desks so she knew her fellow blonde was around here somewhere. She grabbed her new coffee and, once she'd said good morning to everyone and exchanged some playful comments with Morgan, headed for her small slice of technological heaven.

She placed her purse in its usual spot, put her coffee cup in its normal spot and turned on her babies so they were ready for anything she asked of them today. While she mainly worked with Hotch and the rest of that team, she was occasionally asked by other BAU teams for some help running information, checking cameras, etc. so she checked her emails and phone messages and found a couple of requests so she started working on them. Her team were benched for the next three days so they could catch up on severely overdue paperwork, much to Morgan's displeasure. Chief Strauss had assured them that if they were desperately needed, they'd be called in but she had also reminded them they weren't the only BAU team. Morgan still complained about the paperwork.

She's been working for a few hours now, only leaving her little world for coffee breaks. Every now and then, someone walks in to her area to ask her something or see what she's up too. She calls her team members out on avoiding their paperwork when they come in. They don't deny it and only linger for a couple of minutes before deciding to get back to it. Garcia calls people back with the information they've requested and once she's done everything she's been asked to do, she rearranges her office. She takes all of her photos and little decorative things down and cleans her space before putting her things back. She laughs a little as she looks at each photo before putting them up. She has photos of her with her team, a photo taken of her and her parents a month before they died, photos of old friends and photos of new friends she doesn't get to see often. She's just finished putting everything up when she gets another phone call. A quick glance at the caller I.D. but there's no name and she doesn't recognise the number.

"This is FBI Technical Analyist, Penelope Garcia speaking." She greets as she answers. She rarely answers with the appropriate greeting but since she doesn't know the number, she didn't want to embarrass herself if the caller turned out to be a big boss or someone important. It had been embarrassing enough when she'd answered a call from Strauss with a less than appropriate greeting. She did not want a repeat of that.

"Miss Garcia?" Her breath hitched because there was no way that voice belonged to who she thought it did. "It's me, Ed." Apparently it did.

"Holy shit. Edward Elric?" She wasn't normally one to swear but she believed she could be forgiven for this one time.

"Yeah. Surprise." He said dryly and Garcia couldn't stop her chuckle.

"How come you're back? What happened? Where are you? Are you okay?" She asked rapid fire, all sorts of scenarios starting to play through her head.

"Whoa, Miss Garcia. I'm okay, I swear." He said quickly, trying to get her to chill out. "I'm with some federal agents. NCIS ones in Washington DC. I don't really know what happened but I kinda turned up in their car park. Probably worse places to turn up in, I guess." He joked and Garcia had to laugh at that.

"As long as you're okay. You said NCIS in Washington has you?" She asked, contacting everyone in her team to meet her in her office.

"Yeah. An Agent Gibbs and his team found me. So did their director." Ed said as he watched the aforementioned men, Vance and McGee having joined them while he was on the phone. All of the agents were listening to his conversation with interest, suspicion and confusion.

"Okay. I know I want to see you and I'll bet you some pizza the others do as well. I've dealt with NCIS a couple of times. They have a room called MTAC. Do you think you can put one of the agents on the phone? Or the director, if he's there?" She assumed that a teenager appearing from literally out of nowhere would intrigue the hell out of anyone, including directors of federal agencies. Also, if she were the director of a federal agency, she'd want to keep the teenager in her sights at all times, considering his unique entrance.

"Uh, yeah. Hold on a second, I'll put the director on." It didn't take her long to confirm who the director was so when he answered she could greet him by name.

* * *

 

Director Vance's morning was hectic. It was his turn to drop his children to school and they were running late when his son couldn't find his homework. They were halfway there when his daughter realised she'd forgotten her lunch. Rather than turn around in DC traffic at that time, Vance had stopped at the first bakery he saw and bought her some lunch. His son sulked because he hadn't bought him anything but Vance pointed out that if he were to forget his lunch, he'd be bought something. That was followed up by a stern warning to not forget his lunch on purpose, which his boy had sulked at.

He'd finally arrived at the office, an hour later than normal, and got started on paperwork he was behind on only to get a call from his wife two hours into it. His daughter was sick, something about the sandwich causing mild food poisoning, and the school wanted her to be picked up. His wife had gone to do so but her car wasn't starting. So Vance told her to call AAA to have the battery checked while he went to pick up his daughter. The mechanic was still there when he arrived home and Jackie took her inside while the mechanic talked to him. One new battery later, he'd said goodbye to his wife and daughter and headed back to work only to pull into his usual spot and witness a kid fall from the sky. Leon patted himself on the back for how quickly it took for him to pull himself together and walk over to see what the situation was. Once it was diffused enough for the boy, Edward, to agree to head into the building and was escorted to the showers by DiNozzo and McGee, Vance headed for his office after ordering Gibbs to come and get him once the boy had been checked over. He'd reassigned the investigation into the death of Lieutenant Jameson to another team and instructed his secretary to let permit Gibbs or any of his team in without delay. It took half an hour for McGee to walk in with barely a knock to tell him Edward was in the conference room and now he was being handed a phone by said blonde.

"This is Director Vance. Who am I speaking with?" Vance noted how Edward moved himself out of arms reach as soon as he'd handed over the phone.

"My name is Penelope Garcia. I'm a Technical Analyst for the FBI, based in Quantico, Virginia. I'd like to set up a video call to MTAC so my team and I can talk to and see Edward." The woman on the other end of the line didn't beat around the bush and Vance could respect that. Her voice was tight, like she couldn't believe who she'd been talking to and Leon would be the first to admit he was curious as to why.

"I believe MTAC is currently available. DiNozzo." Vance looked up at the man who was already grabbing for the second landline in the room.

"Calling MTAC to confirm." He said as he dialed and waited. Vance turned back to his own conversation.

"May I ask why a video call is necessary?" He asked and heard the lady on the other end talk to someone else before a man answered him.

"This is Supervisory Special Agent Aaron Hotchner. We'd appreciate the video call so we can identify that the person you have is actually Edward. Once we've confirmed who he is, we'll be happy to explain why it's necessary." The only reason Vance didn't groan at the lack of answer was his years of dealing with politicians and various other... difficult people.

"Very well." He glanced at DiNozzo who gave him a thumbs up. "Miss Garcia? I assume you know how to call through to MTAC." When she confirmed she did, he told her to call immediately after they hung up and he'd have the call held until they were in the room before he hung up on her. Edward was watching him silently, though Vance could see he still had the agents in his peripheral. Leon didn't say anything, just nodded to Gibbs before heading for the door. Gibbs and his team followed him and, after a moments hesitation, so did Edward.

* * *

 

The walk to MTAC was quiet though that was more because of Edward talking the chance to observe everything and build a map of this building in his head, just in case. He didn't get the chance to ask any questions about the things he saw and was curious about, though there weren't many of those thanks to Hotch and the others. It wasn't until he saw Vance lower himself slightly so he was eye level with a silver machine that sent a blue light into the dark-skinned mans eye that he spoke up.

"What's that?" He asked the agent beside him. He looked at the silver thing then back at Ed with a slightly confused look, almost like he wasn't sure if Ed was joking of not.

"It's a retinal scanner. It scans retinal patterns in your eye and permits entry to MTAC if you're authorised." McGee answered and watched as Ed's expression shifted to one of intense interest. He almost believed the kid would've pulled it apart to see how it worked if he could've but the door made a noise to tell them access was granted and opened up to permit them entry. Ed moved into the room with a lot more interest and openly gaped at the massive screen in front of him. They gathered in front of said screen, Ed directly in the middle, and everyone a few steps behind him. Vance gave the go ahead to connect the call and Ed gasped as the screen changed to show him the entire BAU team. Ed could see the shock and, to his surprise, happiness on each of their faces though some were more obvious than others.

"Surprise?" Ed said as he stepped forward, grinning at their expressions. He'd been surprised at how much emotion hearing Garcia's voice had dredged up but he was even more surprised at the amount he felt by actually seeing them. The surprised silence at seeing him was broken by him speaking and suddenly everyone was trying to ask him something before Hotch manged to get them to be quiet.

"Edward, what happened?" Hotch asked, cutting to the chase. "From what we understood last time we saw you and Colonel Mustang, you wouldn't be able to come back." Ed opened his mouth to start speaking before abruptly remembering he had an audience behind him.

"Maybe introductions and possibly an explanation first or this won't make any sense to them." He said, jabbing a thumb over his shoulder.

"That's probably a good idea." Hotch acquiesced. Ed turned to face the NCIS team behind before he glanced at the two workers sitting at the desk to their side, wondering whether it would be rude to ask them to leave. His story was not one he needed spread around this building. Vance made up his mind for him.

"If you two would give us the room?" He asked politely yet sternly, leaving no room for argument. The pair nodded and left. Ed watched them leave, waited for the door to lock closed and turned back to everyone, waiting expectantly. Gibbs was the one to realise the kid was waiting for them to introduce themselves.

"I'm Agent Gibbs. These are Agents DiNozzo, McGee and David. This is Director Leon Vance." Each person nodded as their name was called.

"I'm SSA Hotchner. These are SSAs' Rossi, Morgan, Prentiss and Jareau, Doctor Reid and Miss Garcia. As you've already gathered, we know Edward from a previous encounter. Four months ago, NYPD were investigating a murder where the victim died from basically having his blood boiled. Nearly four weeks in, they had four bodies killed with the same MO. Police had no leads, no suspects and the timeline between each victim was shortening. The ME was stumped by how the killer was killing in such a way and the police decided to call us in. When we arrived, we headed for the last crime scene to see the area for ourselves. While we were discussing the case and our first move there was a flash of light and the next thing we knew, there were two strangers lying on the ground next to us. Edward was the first one to wake up and he took having six guns trained on him very well. He then questioned our manners before checking on his companion. Once we ascertained neither were a threat to us, we took them to the local police station we were operating out of and they told us their story." Agent Hotchner finally paused for a moment before considering Edward. "Maybe it's best if you took the story from here, Ed." The blonde made a face but did as suggested.

"Right, well, like Hotch said, I turned up in a flash of light, like I did this morning though my landing was a lot harsher this time round. I guess the most important thing for you lot to know is I'm not from around here. And by around here, I mean this planet. I'm from a separate dimension. I live in a country called Amestris, in a city called Central where I work for the military as the most competent State Alchemist they've ever had." Complete silence was what followed his explanation. While Gibbs and Vance were able to keep their faces relatively neutral, the three younger agents weren't quite as successful. While Ziva looked torn between believing Ed was pulling her leg and being concerned for his sanity, DiNozzo and McGee were doing rather impressive impressions of fish. Ed continued talking like he hadn't noticed their stunned disbelief. "Anyway, like Hotch said, there was a serial killer loose in New York. Mustang and I were sent by Truth to hunt down a rogue alchemist, Thomas Harding, who'd managed to dimension hop over here without going through Truth, which is kinda impossible unless you have an exceptionally rare object. Now Harding was a State Alchemist whose alchemic ability allowed him to boil any sort of liquid and manipulate it. Once we heard about how the victims were killed, Mustang and I were positive Harding was behind it. Since he was an alchemist, a military one at that, and this world knew nothing about alchemy or how to handle an alchemist, Mustang and I offered our help in hunting down and capturing Harding. Through some absolutely brilliant alchemy, yours truly managed-"

"I'm sorry but is no one going to say  _anything_  about how absolutely insane this is?" DiNozzo said incredulously, looking at everyone with wide eyes. "I mean, come on! A separate dimension? And what the hell is alchemy? Just. What the actual fuck, man?" DiNozzo finished his little outburst, slightly ashamed of how pleading his tone turned at the end there. Surprisingly, Gibbs didn't headslap, reprimand or unleash that famous Gibbs look on him for it. Vance didn't even look at him all disapprovingly and judgey like he sometimes does and his two other teammates didn't comment either. The BAU team looked bemused and sympathetic all at once and Edward looked at him, gold eyes amused and, for some reason, approving.

"Okay so your first query; yes, a separate dimension. Don't ask me to explain, I didn't know this planet existed until three months ago. Your second one; alchemy. In short, alchemy is a science. It's the science of understanding, deconstructing and reconstructing matter. In other words, taking one thing and turning it into something else using alchemy." Ed turned to face the BAU team with a slightly worried look. "Was that explanation enough or should I be more detailed?"

"Nah, I think they got the basics of what you're saying." Rossi said, pointedly looking at the NCIS agents behind Ed.

"You're talking about magic." DiNozzo said and only several years being exposed to Gibbs' glares stopped him from flinching under Ed's, though it was a close thing. One of the BAU agents on the screen started chuckling.

"No - Morgan, stop laughing - alchemy is  _not_  magic. It's a science." Ed corrected, sending a small glare at Morgan, who promptly got smacked by Garcia and immediately giving her an exasperatedly betrayed expression. "Thanks, Miss Garcia." Ed said, sending her a blindingly sunny smile before turning back to the NCIS agents.

"I can't believe I'm saying this but I agree with Tony." Ziva said, looking mildly horrified at what she just admitted too. DiNozzo gave her a wounded look that would've been funny if Ed wasn't so annoyed. His head hurt, though granted that wasn't an overly unusual thing for him, and these people looked like they were two minutes from having him committed. Gibbs and Vance were still unreadable and Ed was kind of impressed.

"I believe a demonstration might help you out in getting them to believe you." Hotch pointed out dryly and Ed nodded in agreement. But when he looked around the room, he couldn't find anything he was comfortable transmuting. Well, he could transmute anything in the room; it was the transmuting it back that was the issue. He didn't even know what half this stuff was, let alone how to transmute it back to its original state and working order. His eyes eventually fell on the bag at his feet and he scowled at himself for not thinking of it sooner. Pulling the bag open, he grabbed out his trademark jacket (which was awesome no matter what Mustang said) and laid it out on the floor in front of him. Both sleeves were torn and the left one was stained with his blood. The entire thing was filthy and Ed spotted minor tears and holes in it from either the fight or his fall, he assumed.

"Okay, I'm gonna fix this. Watch." He said as he clapped his hands, letting the familiar ring sound before placing his hands on the fabric and letting the array work. The familiar blue light lit up the dim room momentarily before Ed released the array, letting the crackling energy dissipate and leave behind his coat looking as good as the day he first transmuted it. He let out a pleased noise as he picked it up, shook if off and put it on before looking up at the stunned agents. Even Vance and Gibbs looked shocked. "So that was alchemy."

"That was a lot less impressive than the alchemy you did for us to prove you weren't insane." Morgan commented casually, causing the NCIS agents to look up at them on the screen.

"How was that not impressive?" McGee spoke for the first time in a while, staring at Ed like his skin had turned purple or something. A tug on his coat had the blonde spinning sharply out of the grip of DiNozzo, who was looking at his coat with avid fascination, hand still stretched like he wanted to touch it again.

"Don't touch me." Ed warned the agent as he stepped out of arms reach. DiNozzo looked a little confused but didn't push the issue.

"I didn't say it wasn't impressive. It's just less impressive than what we've seen." Morgan corrected him, bristling slightly.

"Most of the shit you saw me do was in the middle of a fight or something to help track Harding." Ed rolled his eyes at them both.

"That dagger you made had nothing to do with either." Morgan countered and Ed had to give him that one.

"True but it's not like I had a lot of options here! Not unless I wanted to destroy something that Miss Penelope would probably cry over." Edward defended as he gestured to all of the technology. "Besides, my jacket needed fixing. Two birds, one stone." He shrugged nonchalantly. Gibbs was watching him closely and if Ed weren't used to someone watching him all the time, though the homunculi had been far less obvious, he would've been creeped out. As it was, he was used to being under a scrutinising gaze so his response was his normal one; he scowled at the person doing the scrutinising. "Can I help you?" Gibbs considered him for another moment before answering.

"So you say you're from another dimension, you have this ability to do alchemy and this isn't the first time you've been here in America. The first time was a few months ago when you and a companion appeared so you could hunt down a fellow alchemist and you met these FBI agents. I'm assuming you were successful because you returned back to your country and now you're back here again." Gibbs summed up and Edward nodded in agreement, unsure about where this was going. He soon found out. "So why are you here now? Is there another alchemist we should be worried about?" Ed was already shaking his head before he finished asking the second question.

"No. Or at least I don't think so. My, uh, trip? Yeah, let's go with that. My trip here wasn't the same as my first one. Truth didn't send me here." He said, looking at the FBI agents knowingly before turning back to the other federal agents. "Truth is basically an alchemy god though it's kind of a dick and has taken a special interest in screwing me over whenever it can."

"Alchemy god? Great." Ed was kind of impressed with the level of sarcasm DiNozzo had managed to fit in one word.

"Hey, Ed." The blonde's attention was brought back to the FBI agents on the screen by JJ. "Reid, Garcia and I are going to head to Washington so we can catch up with you properly." She went to continue but paused at the flicker of hurt that flashed across Ed's face. "The others have paperwork they need to catch up on which is why they're going to be working extra hard today to get as much done so they can head over tonight." That last part was accompanied by a pointed glare to the rest of her team and caused some illegible mutterings (Morgan), nods of agreement (Rossi and Hotch) and slightly sheepish smile (Prentiss). JJ held them in her glare for a moment more, just to make sure it stuck, before turning back to the blonde, soft smile in place. "But before we leave, how about you tell what happened this morning so you don't have to repeat it over and over again?"

"Yeah, okay." Ed tried to hide how pleased he was to be seeing them in person but the looks he was given told him he wasn't as successful as he'd hoped. "So Al and I - oh yeah, Al's my brother, I don't know if I mentioned he was in hospital last time but he's out now and cleared for missions - we were on a mission to find and arrest this low-life criminal, Moore, for a couple of robberies and hold ups. We weren't expecting much trouble 'cuz he only had a six-chamber revolver and no other weapon. So we kinda literally ran into him just as he came out of a jewellery store he'd literally just robbed and he recognised me so he bolted. We went after him but lost him in the warehouse district. We were about to leave when he took a shot at Al and we-" Ed abruptly stopped and he had a look of intense concentration on his face before he turned suddenly to his right. The sudden change got every agent on alert.

* * *

 

"Ed? What is it?" Hotch asked, all business. Everyone was tense while they waited for Ed to answer.

"There's a massive surge in alchemic energy nearby. Like, so big I'd have been able to sense it in Amestris." He answered, sounding confused and on edge. He clapped his hands before spreading them wide and the NCIS team took a quick step back as they say his eyes glow electric blue. It was only half a minute later before Ed cut his tracking array off with a gasp. The fatigue he experienced was less than he expected but more than it would've been in Amestris. The results he got from the array were completely unexpected. "There's two collections of alchemic energy outside." Ed explained to the anxious agents.

"What's that mean?" DiNozzo demanded as his hand twitched towards his weapon. Ziva placed a hand over his to stop him. Ed took up his typical thinking pose; one arm across his chest with his other elbow resting on it and his chin resting in his hand, lips moving as he thought of and eliminated possible causes before gasping as he realised exactly what was happening.

"Portals. There are two portals opening up!" He exclaimed, darting for the exit before he even thought about it. A strong grip latched onto his arm, nearly yanking him back. Growling, he wrenched himself out of Gibbs' grip before leveling the man with a glare. "What?" He snarled, itching to get to the parking lot where the portals were about to open. His peripheral showed the rest of the NCIS team and FBI agents on screen, except only Hotch and Garcia were still there.

"Where do you think you're going?" Gibbs asked calmly, not even twitching at the amount of anger thrown his way.

"You're probably about to have two maybe hostile, definitely dangerous and certainly pissed off alchemists drop in to your car park and you're really questioning where I'm going?" Ed asked incredulously. "I'm going out there to make sure your trigger-happy agents don't get themselves killed fighting against someone more dangerous than anyone they've ever faced!" Ed took off again, deftly dodging any attempts to grab him again, and slipped out of the room. The last thing he heard from inside was Hotch calling for Director Vance to hold on.

Ed nearly hit the railing in front of him before he vaulted over it and onto the staircase below, barely pausing before jumping down the remaining steps and heading for the elevator he'd come up in. He heard four distinct sets of footsteps running down the staircase behind him, someone softly exclaim 'woah' (he assumed DiNozzo) before he managed to slip in the elevator just as whoever was in it stepped out. Jabbing the 'G' button to get him to the floor he wanted, he waited as the door slid shut just as Gibbs came into view. He only had to wait a few moments before the elevator came to a stop and he was off and running again for the car park. He was honestly surprised at how quickly the NCIS agents were able to catch back up with him. Before anyone could say anything, there were two flashes of light and two people falling. Ed was able to recognise the first one right away and made a beeline straight for him, keeping an eye on the second one, who was the first to stir.

"Mustang! Get up!" He yelled, barely ten metres away from the still form of his commanding officer before the second person spun around at his shout, causing Ed to skid to a stop. It took a single heartbeat for Ed to realise who it was and another to clap and drag his fingers across the bitumen, sending a wave of spikes at the man, hoping to catch him off guard. A red crackle of energy destroyed his attack before it could reach its target. Ed snarled at both the failed attack and the person standing there. "Moore."


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Edward and Mustang find themselves back in another dimension but this time they're in a new city with new people and facing another rogue alchemist, only this one is out for their blood. With Truth not being involved, they must figure out how to take down the alchemist and get home. New friends and old come together to help them but will it be enough?

"Well, hello there, Edward." Moore grinned as he faced the pissed-off alchemist, barely paying attention to the unconscious one behind him or to the four people watching them off to the side. "Fancy seeing you here." The blonde's lips curled further back as he snarled.

"You sent me here, you pathetic dick." The other man chuckled at the childish name-calling. The sound of four guns safeties being clicked off drew the brown-haired man's attention and he clicked his tongue disapprovingly at them.

"Can't have you lot interrupting this." He said before raising his hand, letting Ed catch a red glint in between his fingers, and unleashing an attack on the agents. Ed immediately sent a transmutation of his own and the hastily constructed wall disintegrated from Moore's attack but the agents hadn't been touched. Unfortunately for Ed, Moore had anticipated that and sent an attack the blonde couldn't block. The wave that hit Ed sent him flying into the side of the car behind him with enough force to crumple the door and daze the blonde. Ed was quick to recover and transmuted six throwing knives out of the ruined panel, sending them flying in quick and precise procession, aiming five of the knives at Moore's face before sending the sixth for his right shoulder. Just like he thought he would, Moore knocked the first five out of the air, lazily grinning at Ed, before the sixth one buried itself in the man's shoulder.

Moore let out a howl of pain before ripping the knife out of his shoulder and flinging it aside. Swapping the stone into his other fist, he raised it to unleash an attack only to find the blonde suddenly right there in his face. He had a split second to process this before he was sent stumbling with the force of the punch Ed landed. Ed kept the man on the defensive, never giving him an opportunity to turn the tide, even though the man got a few lucky hits in, and never giving him the chance to utilise the red stone still in his fist. The blonde finally managed to capture the brunette's left wrist with his automail hand and  _squeezed_  until he heard a sickening crack and Moore's yelp of pain. Moore reflexively dropped the stone and Ed wasted no time kicking it as far away as he could before letting Moore's busted wrist go. The man used the opportunity to stumble a few steps back.

"You're an idiot if you think that was the only one I had." Moore sneered as he carefully reached into his right pocket, grimacing against the pain in his shoulder, and pulling out another stone.

"Of course you had more on you. Why the fuck would the universe be on my side all of a sudden?" Ed sighed, stepping forward to re-engage the man but Moore was prepared. Using a similar attack as before, Moore blasted Edward backwards. The blonde flew a few metres before landing hard on his left shoulder, rolling from the momentum, gaining his feet almost immediately before dropping to one knee as his head swam. Moore was obviously a quick learner because he didn't let the teenager get back to his feet before sending a second attack straight for the blonde. Ed could hear a couple of the agents behind him call his name in panic and fire off a couple of shots but he could only watch as Moore sent stone replicas of his throwing knives at him only for them to blasted away by a massive stream of fire.

"It's about fucking time, you lazy bastard!" Ed yelled out as he clapped and sent a stone fist for where he knew Moore had last been standing. Only the fist hit the ground instead of a person. A quick look showed what had happened; Moore had created a hole and escaped via tunnel. Ed sighed, spat out some blood before looking around for the stone he'd forced Moore to drop. Spotting it, he snatched it up and turned to face his now-conscious commanding officer who was striding across the parking lot to meet him. Ed noticed the agents moving forward cautiously.

"I think a 'thank you' would be appropriate, Fullmetal. I did just save you." Mustang smirked and any positive emotions Ed felt about having someone else here with him disappeared at the sight of it.

"Oh sure, Mustang. I'll thank you just as soon as you've saved my life as many time as I've saved yours." Ed sniped and Mustang rolled his eyes.

"As if you've saved me more times than I've saved you, shortstack." Ed bristled at the short comment.

"Wanna bet? Remember when that lady spiked your drink with poison and I stopped you from drinking it? Or how about when I spotted that sniper and made his rifle blow up in his face before he could assassinate you? Oh! There was that time when we were sent to a different dimension by Truth to hunt down a crazy, rogue alchemist who then tried to smoosh you with a boulder before I tackled you out of the way. You were unconscious for this one but there was that time you got sent to the same dimension as before and the crazy alchemist who sent us here tried to kill you only for me to draw his attention long enough for you to wake up. Would you like me to keep going?" Ed grinned triumphantly as Mustang sighed in defeat. The noise of a throat being cleared reminded the two men they had an audience.

"Fullmetal. Would you like to introduce us?" Mustang asked, though he made it sound like an order. Ed rolled his eyes.

"Mustang, these are Agents Gibbs, McGee, DiNozzo and David. Agents, Mustang." It was Mustang's turn to roll his eyes.

"Brigadier-General Roy Mustang. Pleasure to meet you." Mustang ignored Ed's mutterings about ranks and posturing as he shook the agents' hands. "Are you FBI as well?" Mustang asked.

"NCIS." The older one, Gibbs, corrected. Mustang caught Ed's eye and asked for a silent explanation.

"They're like the FBI but they deal strictly with their Navy. Does anyone have a marker?" Ed's quick subject change startled three of the agents before McGee produced one.

"Here you go." He said as he handed it over. Ed grunted a 'thanks' before yanking off his left glove and drawing a circle with some symbols on the back of his hand. "What's that?" McGee asked curiously just as Ed pressed the circle and it glowed for a moment.

"An array." Ed replied as he put his glove back on. Upon seeing the question on their faces, he elaborated. "Most alchemists need to draw an array so they can transmute. It's a way to focus alchemic energy into doing something specific. So I couldn't use the array I just drew for anything except what it's designed for which, by the way, is speeding up the amount of alchemic energy I can absorb from around me. I wouldn't have to do this at home but this dimension doesn't have as much alchemic energy lying around and the amount I expend with each transmutation is more than what I would at home so I need this array to help me recover quicker." As he spoke, the agents could see the effects the array had on him. His eyes weren't as exhausted as they were mere moments ago and his breathing wasn't as harsh.

"Why would you need to absorb the energy faster?" Ziva asked, stepping forward a little.

"A couple of reasons. One, if Moore were to come back now, I'd be able to use one or two minor arrays before I was too exhausted and this way I've got more energy to use on more useful arrays. The second one is because I need more energy than what I've got to fix your parking lot. This is the quickest way to get it. I can't do anything about the car I was slammed into though." He said, gold eyes darting towards the ruined sedan. "Sorry bout that, by the way." He apologised, wincing slightly at the damage done to the car. He was gonna feel those injuries in the morning.

"Oh sure." Mustang drawled. "You'll apologise for breaking their things but not the stuff you destroy that belongs to the military." Ed rolled his eyes at him.

"You see, the difference there is I'm actually sorry I broke their stuff." Ed pointed out and Mustang huffed. Ed didn't pay any attention to it. DiNozzo, McGee and Ziva looked either worried or awed he was talking back to Mustang. Gibbs looked like he was almost going to smile at their exchange. Ed internally took stock of his damage. His head hurt at least ten times as much and he thought he'd reopened his left arm. His back felt like one big bruise, his left shoulder was killing him from when he landed on it, he had a tonne of nicks and grazes from the bitumen and glass and he was fairly certain he'd damaged his right ankle somehow. Both automail limbs were still working perfectly so he had one less thing to worry about right now. He had some bruised ribs from some of the lucky hits Moore got in during their hand-to-hand fighting but he was so used to that injury that they barely registered.

"What's the difference between your alchemy and Moore's?" McGee piped up and DiNozzo rolled his eyes at Ziva. Ed narrowed his eyes slightly at the exchange.

"What do you mean?" Ed asked, genuinely curious as to how someone who'd only found out alchemy existed an hour ago would know there was a difference. There was, after all, only one way to tell.

"The light you created when you clapped was a different colour to the one he created." Ed was duly impressed. It seemed at least one of these agents were paying attention enough to realise that meant the alchemy differed.

"Good catch." Ed grabbed the stone in his pocket and showed them it. He stashed it again once they had a look, not willing to let it be seen for too long. "That's a Philosopher's Stone. It allows the person using it to forgo any and all alchemic laws that alchemists are bound by. They're horrible weapons and when they're used, they create a red energy as opposed to the blue one used by every other alchemist. These stones grant even the weakest alchemist more power than anyone could ever imagine. If you're wielding a stone, you're almost always guaranteed the win in any battle." Ed explained.

"So how'd you win against him?" Ziva asked curiously. She saw how good a fighter Edward was but if what he said about the red stone was true, she wanted to know why he'd been able to win.

"Fullmetal is one of the very few alchemists who have gone up against someone wielding a stone multiple times and come out alive. His brother is another alchemist who would have been able to go up against Moore and hope to win. I could have held my ground as well but we are the only ones who could." Mustang informed them and Ed looked slightly startled at the praise.

"It does help that I'm the single best alchemist in the country and that there are only two people who I've fought against who have been able to beat me in strictly hand-to-hand combat." Ed shrugged.

"And he's modest." Mustang tacked on the end and Ed took great pleasure in elbowing him with his right elbow in his gut. He was walking back out to where he and Moore had fought before Mustang could retaliate, though that didn't mean he was spared the creatively cuss-less curses his CO managed to come up with. He got to where he figured was the central point of the damage and spun to face everyone, eyes already darting around to collect data for what he needed to do. Once he managed to do this, he was gonna interrogate Mustang about why the fuck he and Moore turned up here.

"You lot need to move." He pointed to the undamaged space between the lines of cars. "There should be good enough." Mustang was smart enough to get out of the way but the three younger agents looked at Gibbs for his orders. Ice-blue eyes locked with golden ones for a few moments before the older man gave a sharp nod and moved to stand near Mustang, his team following dutifully behind. Ed spotted Vance lurking off to the side but the man wasn't in the way so he didn't comment. He took a deep breath, summoned the needed array to the front of his mind and clapped. The unusual ringing clap sounded and he placed his hands on the ground directly in front of him before he let the pent up energy flow out of him and watched as the car park mended itself.

Blue lightning raced along the cracks and the bitumen seemed to melt and harden immediately and after a few moments there wasn't any evidence an alchemic fight ever took place there. DiNozzo, McGee and Ziva all watched the released energy with unrestrained awe on their faces and Ed had to wonder if the amazement that seemed to always be evident after one of his transmutations on Earth would ever go away. Gibbs and Vance both managed to keep their faces neutral but Ed hadn't missed that singular moment where they hadn't been able to keep their masks in place when he first started. He allowed the array to do its job until he was satisfied with the result, at which time he let the transmutation end. Though his energy absorption array was still active, and would be for the next ten minutes, he still felt damn near drained of all energy and he internally scowled at how much energy a simple array like that cost him over in this dimension. He felt a hand under his left elbow, holding him steady and blinked up at Mustang, almost impressed with how quickly he managed to get to Ed's side.

"How are you feeling?" Mustang asked, worry tainting his tone. Three months ago, Ed would've teased him for that while secretly wondering if the dark-haired man was truly worried. The fact that he didn't spoke volumes.

"I hate this dimension." Ed muttered as he let Mustang lead him back over to everyone else. Vance had joined the NCIS team where they stood. Mustang let out an amused huff and Ed was too tired to growl at him for it. He wasn't too tired to file this moment away so he could get him back later though. Ed felt five sets of eyes rake over his body, checking for new injuries and assessing how badly he could be hurt.

"Go see Doctor Mallard before we sit down and debrief." Mustang eyed off the dark-skinned man who spoke before registering Ed's tense posture. A quick glance at his subordinate made him realise why. The teenager had hurt his right side and for any doctor to treat him, he'd have to remove his shirt. Ed may have been comfortable enough in front of the BAU team to let them see his hand but evidently he wasn't as willing this time around.

"There's no need to bother your doctor." Mustang spoke before Edward could try and argue his way out of medical treatment. Five sets of eyes swung his way. "I've got more than enough experience dealing with battlefield injuries. Fullmetal's tendencies to get into a fight nearly every mission has made sure of that. I'll just need access to a first aid kit and private room." He informed them and watched as the two older men seemed to have a silent conversation before a decision was made.

"Agent McGee will show you to a private room while Agent David gets you a first aid kit. They'll stay outside the room until you are done before escorting you to my office, where we will debrief." Edward hadn't introduced this man but he appeared to be the one in charge of the rest of them, not Agent Gibbs, like Mustang had suspected. Mustang nodded his thanks and he felt Ed's relief as the smaller man's frame relaxed slightly against him. They'd started following the two agents assigned to them when Ed's name was called, causing them all to stop and look back at the remaining three men.

"I'd figured you'd like to know, Edward. Your friends will be here in," a quick flick of his wrist gave the dark-skinned man access to his watch face, "a little under an hour now." Mustang looked down at the blonde questioningly and was even more confused at the way his face seemed to brighten a little.

"Really?" He asked and the other man nodded. Mustang cleared his throat, effectively drawing the blondes attention to him and he could see the realisation that Mustang wasn't in the loop dawn on Edward. "Oh, right. Before you and Moore dropped in, all of us were talking to Hotch and the others. They were helping me convince these guys I wasn't insane when I sensed the portals nearby. Once I realised what I was sensing, I took off. I guess Hotch and the others told Vance they were on their way when I left." Ed told him. Mustang was surprised to find himself relaxing a little at the thought of having the FBI agents close by. They already had experience helping them hunt down an alchemist and they'd be able to help them again this time.

"Good. That's really good." He said before tugging on Ed's arm to get him walking again. "Now let's go patch you up so you don't pass out when they get here." Ed's angry growl was worth the snide remark.

* * *

 

They were soon shown to an empty room, what used to be an office space by the looks of it, and it wasn't long before they were rejoined by the lone female agent on the team. Mustang thanked the woman, noting that she had the same air about her that Hawkeye did, before shutting the door on the two agents. Mustang had barely turned from the door and taken a step when he was bombarded with questions.

"What happened when I disappeared? Is Al okay? Why are you and Moore here? Did something go wrong? Is Al okay?" Mustang held up a hand for silence, effectively cutting of Ed's barrage of questions, especially since the blonde had started to repeat some of them.

"Al's fine. Other than a few bruises and minor cuts, he was completely fine when I turned up here." Mustang figured that, even though it technically wasn't the first question asked, it was the question Ed wanted answered first. He gestured for the blonde to sit on the abandoned desk and lift his shirt, which he did. Mustang got to work, not even twitching at the sight of all of the scars that littered the teenager's torso. "Al was able to apprehend Moore easily after you were sent here. To be honest, it wasn't hard; Moore surrendered as soon as you were gone apparently. Once he was secure, Al got a phone call through to me. It took a while for us to get a location out of him and even longer to get him to calm down once we arrived so he could tell us what was wrong." Mustang explained as he cleaned up some road-rash Ed had on his back. "Once we realised, we immediately swept the area for you, just in case the array hadn't worked properly. When there was no sign of you, I went to go see Moore and look at the array myself. Unfortunately, Al neglected to mention in his panic that Moore had access to stones and he must've forgotten to search the man when he secured him. As soon as I was halfway across the array, Moore was out of his cuffs and had entered the array himself before he activated it." Ed flinched as Mustang felt his ribs and the older man sighed. "I'll have to bind these." Ed just nodded his agreement.

"You walked onto an array without disarming it first? That was a rookie mistake, Mustang." Ed smirked as he watched Mustang wrap his ribs carefully. "At least I have the excuse of saying neither Al nor myself could even see it through the amount of dust on the floor." Mustang rolled his eyes at him.

"Whatever, brat. You can put your shirt back on - nice outfit by the way - since I'm done." Ed did as he was told (for once). "I'm just surprised he managed to hide the fact that he was an alchemist from everyone." Ed shook his head.

"He didn't have to hide anything. He told us he wasn't an alchemist. Or, at least, not a very good one. But you know how the Philosopher's Stone works. You don't need to be a good alchemist to use one. You just need the knowledge and even a tiny bit of talent. Moore good as told me he had no clue how to use alchemy and I think it's pretty obvious he doesn't know what the stones are capable of." Mustang paused for moment, thinking over the admittedly minor interactions he'd had with the man, before coming up blank.

"Explain?" He requested, not ordered, which was part of the reason Ed did so. The other part was because Ed loved discussing his theories with anyone smart enough to follow.

"He didn't heal himself and he didn't make any of his attacks as deadly as he could have." Ed said and, without even pausing, forged ahead with a further expansion of that answer. "We've seen first hand that the stone can heal but a lot of people in Amestris, even some alchemists, don't seem to realise you can heal someone with alchemy. Just not Amestrian alchemy. Creta and Xing have the best healing methods, though Xing is admittedly alkehestery, not alchemy. The point is, it would take a little longer but you can heal with alchemy, you just have to know the methods. Moore didn't heal himself at all. I think he doesn't realise he  _can_. Something tells me Harding figured it out by accident while he was over here, which explains why his adoptive brother doesn't know." Mustang interrupted the rambling before it really got out of hand.

"And his attacks?" He asked and Ed's eyes focused back on him.

"His attacks weren't as deadly as he could've made them. That attack you intercepted could've been a lot worse." Ed said. "He used the stone to make stone daggers to throw at me, an attack your flames easily thwarted. If he'd changed the composition to something heavier, metal for example, your attack wouldn't have worked as well, if at all. I know," Ed held a hand up to stop the objection before it could come, "you would've taken that into consideration when you launched that attack but Moore still didn't realise he could've changed the material so completely. I would've defended myself by bringing my automail across my chest at the last second and metal knives would've had more of a chance of damaging me than stone ones." Mustang had now caught up with what Ed was saying.

"Moore had no clue how much power he holds right now nor does he realise what he could do with it." Mustang said and Ed nodded, happy the older man had caught on. "If we can catch him before he realises just how much power he's got-"

"We'd not only stand a better chance in the fight but we'll get our tickets home, just like last time." Ed finished up for him. Mustang nodded.

"So that's the plan. We catch Moore before he figures out his new power and we trade the stones for passage home." Mustang summed up and Ed hummed his agreement. "So now we've just got to hunt down an unhinged alchemist who has no control over his alchemy and wants us both dead." Ed clapped him on the shoulder as he hopped off the desk.

"Yup, that about sums it up." He grinned, completely nonplussed by the looming danger. "I hope Vance has some food. I'm starving." He complained immediately and Mustang had no chance at stopping his eye roll.

"How unusual." He drawled. "Come on, let's go get this debriefing started."


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Edward and Mustang find themselves back in another dimension but this time they're in a new city with new people and facing another rogue alchemist, only this one is out for their blood. With Truth not being involved, they must figure out how to take down the alchemist and get home. New friends and old come together to help them but will it be enough?

Tim and Ziva were standing guard on opposite sides of the closed door the two strangers had disappeared behind. Neither had spoken much since they were given their orders barely twenty minutes ago. McGee wasn't sure what was going on in Ziva's head but his own was a mess. He always believed in what he could see. He's never bought into magic, aliens, ghosts or other such things because he's never seen any hard evidence proving they were real. Having said that, he's always said he had a very open mind, that if any bulletproof evidence came to light, he'd accept it as any well-trained investigator would. Right now, McGee was having a hard time believing what he'd witnessed in the last couple of hours. Despite having witnessed it with his own two eyes, his brain was finding it extremely hard to accept that he had seen some blonde kid literally fall from the sky only to then have one of the FBI's most requested BAU unit's phone into MTAC claiming the kid's story about alternate dimensions and alchemy were all true. They hadn't even heard the whole story about this Harding person and Edward's world when Edward had claimed he could sense some sort of energy before darting out of the room and literally leaping over the balcony onto the staircase below before racing for the elevator.  _Then_  he'd seen two more people fall from the sky, causing Ed to falter momentarily as he recognised one of them and made a beeline for him before the second person spun to face him. The vicious look on Ed's face and the fact that the boy had barely even stopped before he'd sent an attack that should've been impossible in every sense had McGee stop in his tracks quickly and he wasn't the only one. His team stopped next to him, guns drawn and raised but none of them knew what to do in this sort of situation. Even Gibbs had a look of complete disbelief on his face. As one, they'd racked their weapons slides, drawing the attention of the brown-haired man. Edward had been the only reason none of them had died right then. The realisation of that caused McGee to shudder slightly.

"Are you alright, McGee?" Ziva's soft voice asked, her concern obvious as her pretty brown eyes watched his body language closely.

"Yeah. I'm just trying to wrap my head around this entire situation." He sighed as he leant slightly back against the wall. "I mean, this is so beyond anything we've ever dealt with and we've dealt with some weird stuff. But this is just literally mind-blowing." Ziva was nodding in agreement.

"I understand. I don't think my mind has completely processed everything yet." She admitted and McGee couldn't help the warm feeling he got knowing Ziva trusted him enough to admit that she was as thrown by this as everyone else. It wouldn't have been too long ago that Ziva would have never have admitted to that, thinking it would make her seem weak.

"I don't think anyone's has. Tony hasn't even cracked a joke or made a movie reference about this." McGee pointed out and Ziva hummed in slight surprise as she realised he was right. "Did you notice that neither Gibbs or Vance got up Tony when he lost it in MTAC?" Ziva nodded, fairly certain she knew where this was going. "They're as thrown by this as we are. I don't think the enormity of this is going to hit us until later." A thought struck Ziva.

"What do you think Abby will be like once she learns about all of this?" She asks and watches as McGee's face makes a few curious expressions.

"Oh, she'll either have Edward under a microscope as soon as possible or will be asking a million questions and demanding demonstrations or all of the above. I think she and Edward will get along though and that's a scary thought." McGee predicted and almost shuddered against the image of Abby and Edward let loose by themselves.

"Do you think the building will survive that?" Ziva asked seriously. She may have only spoken a handful of words to the blonde but she had a feeling that Edward was hiding his personality behind his suspicion of them. She'd seen something similar to playfulness when he'd been talking to the FBI agents and even more with Mustang.

The door in between them opened suddenly and the two alchemists made their way out, cutting off whatever response McGee had. Edward was still tugging his flambouyant jacket back on as he lead Mustang out of the room. Mustang handed the much emptier first aid kit back to Ziva.

"Thank you, Agent David." He said as the female agent took the kit back. She gave him a careful smile but her eyes reminded the two alchemists of a certain blonde sniper back in Amestris.

"You're welcome. Are you okay, Edward?" She asked, focusing her gaze on the blonde.

"Yup." He popped the 'p'. "That fight was one of the more tame ones I've been in." Ziva and McGee looked like they simultaneously wanted to ask and didn't want to know. Mustang just rolled his eyes.

"Well, we're glad you're okay. Let's head up to Vance's office. Everyone else is waiting up there." Ziva said and the two of them nodded for them to lead the way. Mustang and Edward didn't talk on the way there, too busy watching their surroundings and the people near them. Both Ziva and McGee nodded at the pretty, tanned lady sitting behind the desk in the outer office. She nodded back as she picked up the phone, pressed a button and informed whoever was on the other end that they were there.

"Director Vance is waiting for you." She told them as she hopped up from her desk to open the door for them.

"Thanks, Maria." McGee said as he moved through the door. Both Edward and Mustang said their own thanks as they followed while Ziva brought up the rear. Edward decided that whoever designed this building had a serious obsession with orange. Vance's office seemed to double as a conference room and there were some seriously comfy looking couches in the corner that actually reminded Ed of the ones in Mustang's office. His body took that moment to remind him he was still plenty exhausted, despite his absorbing array, and it took what little self-control he had to stop himself from finding out if those couches were as comfy as they looked.

"Your FBI friends should be here shortly." Vance gestured to the two chairs in front of his desk as he spoke and Ed didn't need to be prompted twice. He stole one of the chairs and left Mustang the other one. He wasn't the only one to raise an eyebrow when, instead of sitting, Mustang chose to stand next to Ed. After a moment, Vance continued speaking while Gibbs took the spare seat, leaving his team to stand around him. "Before they get here, would you mind continuing with your story from earlier, Edward?"

"Uh, yeah, sure." Ed said, sitting up a bit straighter. No one missed the slight wince he tried to hide but no one commented on it either. "So you heard Hotch tell you what was happening on this dimension before we appeared in New York. Look, you guys really should know our country's history first for this to make any sense." Vance and Gibbs gave a short, sharp nod each and Ed started explaining.

* * *

 

"Until a little over six months ago, our country was at war. Amestris had started a civil war against a race of people, the Ishvalens, nearly 15 years ago. This war was started when an Amestrian soldier shot and killed an Ishvalen child for no reason. The Ishvalens reacted and Amestris responded violently. Thanks to our military using State Alchemists, we won the civil war and very nearly eradicated the Ishvalens. What no one knew was practically the entire military was corrupt and being controlled by this being and they had orchestrated the entire war. Even the State Alchemy program was created for this being's purpose to find strong alchemists they could use and ultimately sacrifice to reach his final goal which was to become something more powerful than a god. To do this, he used five alchemists who had survived a specific transmutation to open the Gate of Knowledge each alchemist possesses. When these five were opened simultaneously and in such close quarters, they clashed and forced the Gate belonging to our Earth to open. There are a few more details but the end result was this being sacrificing nearly every single human in Amestris to gain his power." Ed paused, partly to see if there were any questions so far but mainly to see his audience's faces. He almost smirked at their expressions but refrained himself and continued.

"Luckily, one of the sacrifices actually did something useful, for once in his life, and had set a trap earlier. This countermeasure was triggered and the power the being had gathered was taken away and everyone who had been killed was brought back to life. So now instead of a massive god-like being to deal with, we now had just a regular super-powered douchebag to deal with so we fought. My brother gave his life to save me and I managed to, with some help, stop the threat. Once it was dealt with, I performed a transmutation that brought me face-to-face with Truth. I mentioned it earlier. Alchemy god, massive dickwad. Anyway, in exchange for my brother alive, I promised it a couple of things; one of them being a favour. Three months ago, it cashed in on that favour when one of our State Alchemists went rogue and disappeared. Thomas Harding had been missing a month when his CO noticed and Mustang was given the case when military officers went to Harding's home and found it booby-trapped with arrays. So, recognising my superior intellect, Mustang came to me for help and Truth called in its favour, sending me and Mustang to New York to hunt Harding down."

"Fullmetal." Mustang managed to both growl and groan at the same time and Ed was certain that was a first.

"Just telling it like it is, Mustang." Ed quipped back and Mustang backhanded him, causing Ed to hit Mustang back, though it was with his flesh hand because that was the side Mustang was standing on. DiNozzo and McGee shared a look and Ed almost questioned it. His stomach gave a soft growl but he ignored it for the moment, intent on getting back to the story now that Mustang had finished interrupting him. Vance held up a finger in the universal 'one minute' gesture and picked up his phone. Ed shared a quick glance with Mustang but did as he was silently asked.

"Maria? Can you order us some lunch please? Let's go with pizza and enough to feed 20? Get yourself something too." He paused for a moment. "It's no problem. Thank you." He said before hanging up and looking at everyone. "It's past lunch and I figured everyone would be hungry and I highly doubt the FBI agents will be stopping for lunch. Most of them weren't very good at hiding their eagerness to be here as quickly as possible." Vance's eyes twinkled as he glanced at the blonde before gesturing for Ed to continue.

"Thank you, Director." He dipped his head slightly, ignoring Mustang's exasperated gasp before launching back into what he was saying. "Okay, so Hotch already told you that Mustang and I landed in the middle of a crime scene. While waiting for sleeping beauty here to wake up, I spoke with the FBI agents and convinced them I wasn't an immediate risk. Our first conversation basically covered who we were, who they were, where we were and that maybe we were looking for the same man. Well, I may have implied we were from a different country, not dimension and definitely forgot to mention anything about alchemy but that's neither here nor there. So the agents gave us a lift back to police station they were borrowing and Mustang and I told them about Amestris, alchemy and why we were there. It took us one look at the files they had to confirm it was indeed Harding and we offered to assist their investigation. They accepted and we got to work. We figured out who he was killing, I created a couple of clever arrays and we tracked him to his little hidey-hole. I confirmed he had some Philosopher's Stones on him, we fought, Harding caused a rebound almost killing himself and us, we killed him. Our job was done and we went home. So, yeah. That's the story." Edward finished his recap and Mustang was fairly surprised he'd managed to actually keep the retelling so short. Silence followed his words and Ed wasn't surprised by that. He'd pretty much dumped a lot of information on them in less than ten minutes. He couldn't really expect them to be able to process everything as quickly as he could. So he and Mustang waited patiently.

"So, just to see if I got this right," DiNozzo was the first one to speak, "what you're saying is that there's a separate dimension, where you two come from, and three months ago you guys were transported over here because you owed a god a favour and it cashed in that favour and asked you to find someone who'd managed to jump dimensions and decided to start killing randoms. He had some magical stone, like Moore, but you won your fight and went back to your dimension and now, for some reason you're yet to explain, you're back and Moore followed you. Oh, and you can use alchemy which is apparently a science but looks more like magic." He was still looking like he was waiting for someone to yell that it was a joke. Ed just nodded, ignoring the magic comment for the moment.

"What is a Philosopher's Stone?" Ed was slightly startled when it was Gibbs who asked. The man's voice was calm and level. He literally sounded like he'd just asked what day of the week it was. "Each time you mention it, you say it like it's a weapon. I'd like to know what danger it possesses." He explained and Ed could see the reasoning. He wasn't sure why but he hesitated and glanced up at Mustang to see what he thought.

"Might as well tell them. The BAU agents know already. Though, if you haven't already, you may want to explain the basics of alchemy first." He pointed out and Ed realised he hadn't actually explained what alchemy, beyond correcting DiNozzo when he said it was magic.

"Okay, alchemy 101." Ed said, sitting himself back up. "Firstly, alchemy is the science of understanding, deconstructing and reconstructing something. There are three basic principles that alchemists have to follow. One is that in order to create, something of equal value must be lost. You four," he gestured to Gibbs and his team, "saw me create daggers from the car panel. I made six daggers and ended up using nearly half the panel to do so. I could've used less material but my knives wouldn't have been as effective. I could not have made the same quality dagger without using as much material as I did. The second rule is that an alchemist cannot change the nature of the material they're using. This one is easy. I couldn't have, say, taken a piece of wood and turned it into diamonds. The third principle is equivalent exchange. That is, you can't use more material than what you have available. So, I couldn't take a glass of water and create a massive ice sculpture with it. There are two laws that alchemists must follow. You can't create gold because the economy would go to hell and you cannot, under any circumstances, bring someone back from the dead. Those who do commit the ultimate taboo normally die horrible deaths. Those who survive don't do so without horrible consequences and the reason for this is because there is nothing, absolutely nothing, worth the price of a single human soul." Mustang gripped his shoulder tightly and Ed pulled himself back before he could revisit that memory.

"A Philosopher's Stone is something that bypasses all of those rules." Ed continued, ignoring the looks he was undoubtedly getting. "With a stone, you can do whatever you want. You can dimension hop. With a real stone, you can even bring the dead back to life. What Harding had, what Moore currently has, are fake stones. They're just as powerful but they have a lifespan and you never know when you've reached the end of one of them until it's too late. It's created by an alchemist sacrificing human lives with a specific array. The more lives, the stronger the stone. The being that started the Ishvalen war, that almost destroyed our country, he was created by manipulating an alchemist into destroying an entire civilisation, leaving only the alchemist he used as the sole survivor. The stones Moore possess are weaker but we don't know how many he has or what sort of lifespan they have."

"So Moore has been using human souls to perform his alchemy? That's what's in that stone you took off of Moore?" McGee asked and Ed nodded.

"You have a stone?" Mustang asked and Ed looked up at him, brow furrowed before realising.

"Oh, yeah. You were still out of it." He dug into his pocket and pulled the stone out to give to Mustang. "I snapped his wrist to get him to drop this one so he'd have to reveal where he was keeping the other ones. Also, so he had at least one less than he had to start with." Mustang handed the stone back and Ed pocketed it once more.

"That's horrible." Ziva murmured before her eyes widened slightly. Evidently, she hadn't meant to say that out loud but she didn't take the words back. Ed and Mustang didn't argue.

"Why did you let him go?" DiNozzo piped up, suddenly realising that Ed had the opportunity to take Moore down if he'd held onto his wrist. Ed looked at him questioningly. "Moore. You had him but you let go of him when he dropped the stone. So why did you let him go?" McGee and Ziva shifted slightly as they realised Tony was right. Gibbs and Vance just looked at Ed, waiting for his answer.

"I broke his wrist." Ed was confused. Surely everyone, minus Vance, had realised that when they heard the sickening crack and Moore's pained howl. But his confusion turned to anger when he saw the 'so what?' expression written on three of their faces. "You seriously expected me to hang onto his already broken wrist? Do you have any idea how painful that is? It would have been torturous!" Ed didn't even realise he was rising out of his chair until he felt Mustang push him back down, thanks to the grip he had on his shoulder.

"Easy, Fullmetal. Don't do anything stupid." Mustang muttered and Ed shot him a glare. Mustang look unimpressed. "I get it but they don't. You need to remember that these people don't know your history." There was tension in the room as every watched the two have a silent conversation before Ed relaxed slightly back into his seat. Gibbs glanced at Vance and knew the other man suspected the same thing he did. With a jerk of his head, he hopped up and joined his team over to the side. Vance joined a moment later and, with one eye on the two alchemists, they had a hushed discussion. Ed and Mustang paid them no attention.

"I'm not gonna apologise though." Ed muttered to Mustang, who just rolled his eyes before sparing a glace at the five agents who were still grouped up and talking.

"What a shocker." He sighed sarcastically and Ed glared at him again.

"I'll stab you and I'll enjoy it, if you keep this attitude up." He threatened and Mustang huffed out a laugh.

"That's rich coming from you." The glare intensified before mischievous glint sparked in those golden eyes.

"I'll tell Miss Riza that you tripped that array on purpose to avoid your paperwork." Now it was Mustang's turn to glare at the blonde.

"She wouldn't believe you." Ed could hear the slight waver in his voice that betrayed his uncertainty.

"You sure about that? You are notorious for doing stupid shit to try and get out of your paperwork,  _Brigadier-General_. Do you really think she wouldn't believe me if I also pointed out the fact that Al undoubtedly told you what the massive array you walked onto did?" Edward pointed out and Mustang was once again reminded how truly evil this kid could be.

"You're an evil person." Mustang muttered and Ed flashed him a brilliant grin.

"I know." Ed said happily. The sound of someone knocking on the door interrupted both conversations.

* * *

 

Vance stepped away from the other agents before calling for whoever it was to enter. His assistant opened the door.

"Excuse me for interrupting, Director, but your lunch order has arrived." She informed them.

"Thank you, Maria. Have them bring it up. We'll be eating in here." Vance told her and she nodded.

"The front gate also called to let you know there are some FBI agents waiting to be cleared. They should be up within the next ten minutes. Would you like me to organise Agent Dorneget to escort them up?" She asked but Vance shook his head.

"No, Agents DiNozzo and McGee can go down to the lobby and escort them. Thank you, Maria." She dipped her head in acknowledgement before opening the door back up and letting the three delivery people in so they could set the food down on the table before leaving again. Maria thanked them as they left before she stood next to the open door and stared DiNozzo and McGee down pointedly.

"Go." Gibbs said as DiNozzo opened his mouth to complain. DiNozzo let out a little sad huff that caused McGee and Ziva to roll their eyes simultaneously before McGee all but dragged his fellow teammate out the door. You could hear them having a whispered argument as the door shut behind Maria and the agents.

"Help yourselves to some lunch. I imagine the FBI agents will want to hear the next part of your story." Director Vance said as he started opening the pizza boxes up and the room was suddenly engulfed with the smell of fresh, hot pizza. Edward's stomach let out a slightly louder reminder that he was hungry so he didn't waste a second and sat himself at the table, pulling the closest pizza towards him. Mustang sat on his right, removed his gloves and tucked them into his pocket before tucking into his own pizza. Ed noticed more than one look at his still gloved hands as the remaining agents sat down but he elected to ignore them. He'd explain about his automail later.

Gibbs, Ziva and Vance sat at the table and started eating their own lunch. After a few slices had been consumed by everyone (Ed had almost finished an entire pizza himself), there were more questions though these ones were more of the general questions you'd expect. What was Amestris like? What did they do in their spare time? How long had they been in the military? Questions ranging from friends and families to the politics of their country were asked, which then lead to questions about the countries on their borders and other boring things that Edward left Mustang to answer. There were questions that either Ed or Mustang or both didn't answer and they were slightly pleased when their refusal was respected.

Ed had made it through nearly two pizzas when the phone on Vance's desk rang, causing the man to leave the conference table to answer it. A few hums and grunts later, Vance told whoever was on the other end to let them in before hanging up. Vance stood in between the door and the table, blocking whoever it is was from entering the room without acknowledging him first. The door swung open and Maria was the first to enter, stepping aside to hold the door open while everyone else filed inside. As Ed had expected, it was the BAU team with the two NCIS agents sent to escort them up. He couldn't stop the grin that appeared at the sight of them. While their first meeting was filled with mistrust and suspicion on both sides, Ed was happy to say that by the end of their adventure, the BAU team were firmly added to the list of people he actually enjoyed being around. He had no way of knowing that they also counted the blonde and raven-haired alchemists their friends and had missed them when they left, believing they'd never see them again.

"Welcome to NCIS. I've heard plenty of stories from your director about your team successes. It's a pleasure to meet you in person." Vance said as he held his hand out for Agent Hotchner to shake.

"Thank you for having us, especially on such short notice, Director Vance. It's a pleasure to meet you too. We've followed a couple of your major cases, in case we were asked to step in and help, and were very impressed with how you handled the Port-to-Port Killer." Hotch said as he shook the older man's hand. "I see you've joined us once again, Colonel Mustang." Mustang grinned as he left the table to shake Hotch's hand.

"It's Brigadier-General now. And I couldn't have left Fullmetal in your world without proper supervision. You'd have had a lot of property damage on your hands." Hotch's eyes sparked with amusement as he heard the blonde scoff as he stood to join them.

"If that were true, Miss Riza would've been everyone's first choice, aside from Al." Ed sniped back. "Besides, the only reason you're here is because your dumb arse fell for the same trap I did. At least I have the excuse that I had no one warn me about the trap beforehand." He smirked as Mustang sighed.

"You are never going to let me live that down, are you?" He asked wearily, already knowing the answer. As expected, Ed just gave a chirpy 'nope' before their banter was interrupted by the other FBI agents deciding they were tired of waiting and Ed was engulfed in a hug from Garcia and JJ.

"Hi, Miss JJ, Miss Penelope." He managed to gasp out as the two blondes hugged him as hard as they dared before letting him go. Mustang was shaking the other agents' hands and exchanging greetings with them while JJ and Garcia fussed over the injuries they just realised he had. "I'm fine, I swear. No major injuries and I'm definitely not as hurt as I was after the fight with Harding." His answer seemed to mollify the two blondes but their faces were still pinched with worry but Agent Prentiss and Dr Reid's approach stopped any potential comments.

"Hello, Edward." Prentiss greeted him a smile and a quick hug. Reid gave him a smile and pulled him into a quick, one-armed hug. "What have you been up to since we last saw you?" She asked once Ed had said his own greeting to them both.

"Not much." He shrugged, glancing quickly at Mustang and the other FBI agents who had now been joined by the remaining NCIS agents. He brought his gaze back to the four people in front of him. "Al wasn't released from hospital until a month ago so I've been looking after him or doing small missions in Central for Mustang. Once Al was released, I took on missions further away from Central. Al wasn't cleared by the hospital to travel or join me so he stayed in Central. He actually got cleared to go on missions the day before this whole mess happened."

"I'm glad your brother is doing better but what a way to celebrate him being cleared for missions." Prentiss said with a slight wince. The three others nodded as they were finally joined by everyone else. Mustang and Ed greeted the agents they hadn't already.

"Everyone is welcome to sit at the table and help themselves to lunch." Vance said once everyone was caught up. "I figured, from what I gathered from your reaction to seeing Edward in MTAC, that your team wouldn't be stopping for lunch so I took the liberty of ordering lunch for everyone." Vance said in response to the slightly raised brow on Hotch's face. The agents murmured their thanks and helped themselves to the offered pizza. DiNozzo and McGee were helping themselves and Ed grabbed another slice but everyone else had already eaten their fill. Small talk reigned once again, though this time it was mainly between the BAU and the alchemists. The NCIS agents were content to wait until everyone seemed to have eaten what they wanted before someone brought up the main question they wanted answered.

"So," Agents Gibbs immediately had all attention on him with the one word, "why are the two of you back in our country?"


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Edward and Mustang find themselves back in another dimension but this time they're in a new city with new people and facing another rogue alchemist, only this one is out for their blood. With Truth not being involved, they must figure out how to take down the alchemist and get home. New friends and old come together to help them but will it be enough?

Gibbs would never admit this to anyone but he had no idea what to make of the two alchemists. His gut told him they were good people but years of being in the Marines and then a Navy cop told him they were dangerous. Much more dangerous than anyone he'd come up against. He knew that most of the reason for thinking that was because he simply had no information on them or their abilities beyond what they've told them and that made him nervous in a way he hadn't felt in a long time. He felt like he'd just walked into a room after being told the people inside could kill him before he had time to draw his weapon but not being told how they could and being asked to trust that they won't. From the way Edward had reacted upon waking up in this world, the blonde was suspicious about them too and Gibbs had a feeling that the only reason Edward had even gone with them instead of taking off was because his gut was telling him that maybe they were good people and would help him.

Gibbs hadn't realised how tightly wound Edward had been in the building, how ready he was to escape at the drop of a hat, until they'd allowed him to make the phone call to Garcia. As soon as she'd answered and recognised his voice, his whole posture relaxed and some of the cautious air the blonde had surrounding him had dissipated. No one had missed the way that Edward had tensed up and backed away so he wasn't within striking distance when Vance had been speaking to Garcia. There were a few incidents in the short time Edward had been here where Gibbs had suspected something bad had happened to the blonde in the past.

Then the whole mess had happened in the car park. He still had no clue exactly how the teenager had realised something was happening while they were in MTAC and it was rather unsettling to witness those gold eyes become engulfed in electric blue light as the blonde did  _something_  before trying to take off, saying something about portals. Gibbs had grabbed him by the arm to stop him and get more information but the blonde had wrenched himself out of the older man's grip. For a split second, so quick that Gibbs would've missed it if he hadn't seen it thousands of times before, there had been fear in those eyes before they quickly turned angry and defiant. The boy had bristled, spat out that if anyone else tried to engage whoever appeared out of those portals, they'd be hurt or killed and then he took off again, deftly avoiding anyone who tried to stop him and was in the elevator before Gibbs and his team were halfway down the stairs.

They'd arrived in the car park in time to see Edward skid to a stop and take a protective stance in front of the still form that was Mustang. They'd seen the failed attack Edward launched, heard the taunting voice of Moore, heard the biting reply Edward has snapped back and they'd raised their SIGs, each one aiming for Moore, having identified him as the threat. Gibbs had been standing closest to Edward and was the only one who had a clear view of what had happened next. Red energy had sparked and suddenly there was wall in front of them, blue energy dancing on it before the wall disintegrated as Gibbs watched Edward get thrown back into the sedan with enough force to make him and his team to call out his name but the blonde had created half a dozen throwing knives and was on his feet, launching them with deadly accuracy. They watched as the last knife buried itself in Moore's shoulder, heard the man's pained screech as he pulled it out and Ed used that distraction to get up close to Moore and fought the man.

It was obvious to everyone that Edward was the far superior fighter, even if Moore managed to land a few hits, and then Edward had the man's wrist in his hand and squeezed. The sickening wet snap of his wrist and arm breaking sounded across the car park and Moore had wailed, blood draining from his face as he dropped something small and red that Edward had quickly kicked further out of reach before releasing his wrist quickly. Moore had stumbled back but he pulled out another red object and Edward was sent flying backwards, rolling with his landing but the agents could tell he was dazed and hurt. Moore didn't let him regain his feet and the shouted warnings and fired rounds they managed were a waste of breath and bullets. Everyone had forgotten about the second man until a stream of fire had intercepted the attack, saving the blonde who had shouted at the man for taking so long and sending another attack at Moore but the man had used the cover of the fire to escape, leaving Edward scowling and snarking at the raven-haired man, who snarked right back.

Now, they were in the Director's office, pizza on the table and six FBI agents and one FBI technical annalist sitting with them while they made small talk about the alchemists home country and anything that had happened in the months it had been since they last saw each other. Gibbs still wasn't sure what to make of the two Amestrians but he knew one thing; he trusted Edward completely and, by extension, he trusted Mustang. There was absolutely no reason for Edward to have protected them from that initial attack and Gibbs wasn't stupid enough to believe that Edward didn't realise Moore would attack him while he was busy protecting them. The blonde also hadn't been offended by Tony's outburst in MTAC and he was patient enough to explain and answer their questions and the way he bristled when questioned about why he didn't hold onto Moore after breaking his wrist, his absolute disgust at the thought of intentionally causing more pain than strictly necessary to an enemy, confirmed what Gibbs' gut had thought; Edward was a good person. And now they were watching Edward expectantly, waiting for his answer to Gibbs' question about why they were back in this dimension.

"Moore had been causing trouble for a couple of weeks in Central. Home invasions, breaking and entering, robberies, etc, etc. The military police were having a difficult time tracking him and one of the homes he targeted belonged to a higher up in the military. Said higher-up pulled some strings and assigned the case to Mustang. Mustang, the lazy bastard he is, dumped it onto me." Edward leant back in his chair as he started recounting the events. Mustang just let out a long suffering sigh.

"I was too busy dealing with everything else my promotion brought with it. If you'd accepted your promotion, you'd have had a team you could've assigned to it." Mustang pointed out and the blonde glared at him.

"Fuck your promotion. Unlike some people, I don't give two shits about my rank." Ed replied hotly before moving on. "Anyways, Al and I had gotten the case yesterday and spent the day going over the crime scenes to see if we could spot anything. We noticed that Moore had started with a middle-class family before hitting a relatively well-secured alcohol store then he went after the General's home and another middle class house. It made no sense as to why he'd target a relatively easy house then escalate to the alcohol store before going after a General, which was basically a death wish considering I know that General had some alchemist place traps around his place as well as having guards there at all times, but then Moore decided to deescalate and rob another middle class family. It didn't make sense to us so we spent the night going over theories and gathering as much information as we could about him. I thought it just dumb luck that we literally ran into him as he left a jewellery store he'd just robbed but now I think it was all part of his trap." Edward admitted, only slightly reluctant.

"Explain." Mustang ordered, though he was fairly certain he already knew what Edward was thinking. "Please." He tacked on the end when he caught the look Ed was sending his way.

"The amount of dust and debris that was covering that floor in the warehouse was thick enough that neither I or Al spotted any sign of the array. That means the array had to have been there for a while. At least two months." Edward started explaining. "I think Moore robbed the General so he would pull rank and assign you to find him. I think Moore knew you would order me to investigate him. I think he robbed that jewellery store, knowing Al and I were in the area, and had planned to hang around until we got there before leading us to the warehouse. It was just pure chance we were literally about to walk past it when he came out. I think he sent me here but left Alphonse alone because he needed someone to tell what had happened and lure you in and because Alphonse had nothing to do with Harding's death. I think Moore planned on sending us both here so he could get revenge for Harding but he didn't think we would have people here we could turn to for help. I think his plan was to trap us in this dimension, take us out and live here like he and Harding planned." He kept his eyes locked with Mustangs as he talked and he could see the glint Mustang got when he was proven right about something.

"You think he's that smart?" Mustang asked, forgetting about the other people in the room for the moment. Ed looked contemplative for a moment before shaking his head.

"I don't think he's smart like we are or like these guys," he gestured to the agents at the table, "but I think he's smarter than we originally thought. He's been arrested before and he's live his life on the street and he had Harding looking after him for most of his life. He's used the stuff he's learned from all of that and his anger at us to come up with this plan. I'd imagine there aren't many people in Amestris who don't know I'm, unfortunately, your subordinate and it's kinda well known, in the military at least, that you're protective of those under your command. I'm sure Harding told Moore everything that was going on so Moore knew that if something happened to me or Miss Riza or Havoc, you'd investigate it yourself. I think Moore counted on the General throwing his rank around to get the case assigned to you so you'd pass it onto me so he could trap both of us here." Edward's words were met with silence as the agents took in what he said.

"Okay, so he's smarter than you gave him credit for." Morgan said, reminding the two alchemists that there were other people in the room. "What happened when you confronted him, Ed?" The blonde shifted in his seat.

"Well, like I said, we ran into him coming out of that jewellery store. Al and I chased him when he took off and we ended up in the industrial area in Central but we lost him. Al and I assumed he'd escaped and were about to leave to report back when Moore fired a shot at Alphonse." The agents saw the expression on Mustang's face and Mustang saw the questioning look sent his way.

"Alphonse is Fullmetal's only remaining family and he is understandably protective of him. By shooting at Alphonse, Moore would have not only given away his location; he would've gotten Fullmetal's full attention." Mustang explained, ignoring Ed's glare aimed his way.

"Anyway," Ed said in an obvious attempt to move on with the story, "we caught Moore. It wasn't until we were halfway in the array that Moore told us everything. Harding was his family, basically his brother in all but blood. He was devastated by his death and ropeable over the fact that Mustang and I didn't tell the truth. We never mentioned this dimension. We told the military we were in the middle of nowhere and that Harding's body was completely destroyed. We couldn't tell them the truth but Moore knew about Harding being in this dimension because they'd planned to come here. Harding was supposed to get something set up for them before going back and getting Moore but we got to Harding first." No one missed the sudden dampening atmosphere around Edward.

"So, he flashed a stone and the dust disappeared and we realised what we were standing on. He was yelling about how he was going to get me and Mustang back and I managed to get Alphonse off of the array before it was activated. I blacked out and woke up just before I hit the ground in the car park. The NCIS agents were heading somewhere when I appeared and talked me into getting cleaned up and having my injuries looked at. Vance let me call you guys and now you're here." Ed finished up, giving the FBI a small grin that most of them returned.

"So, what happened to you, Brigadier-General Mustang?" Vance asked and Mustang grinned at Edwards groan at the use of his rank. He elected to ignore the mutterings about ego feeding coming from the blonde to answer the director's question. Garcia was patting Ed's arm soothingly, though she did have a small smirk on her face.

"Alphonse managed to contact me after restraining Moore." Mustang started his tale. "He told me what had happened to Fullmetal and my team and I headed over to the warehouse. I ordered my team to split up to look for Fullmetal, just in case the array had sent him somewhere nearby while I went up to interrogate Moore. Alphonse was beside himself with worry but he told me what had happened in more detail. I'll admit I hadn't really thought about what Al had said once I actually saw the array. I knew what the array was for and where Fullmetal was. In his massive worry over his brother, I believe Alphonse forgot entirely about the stone and forgot to check Moore for them. Even though he'd told me Moore had at least one, I didn't even take it into consideration before I acted. Moore escaped his bonds, thanks to the stone, and tackled me before activating the array with both of us inside it. Next thing I know, I'm waking up in the car park in time to see Fullmetal get thrown back by an attack sent by Moore. I intercepted the next attack but Moore used the flames as a cover to escape." He leant back in his chair once he finished speaking, watching the agents with a calm, perusing gaze.

"So we're dealing with another rogue alchemist?" Hotch asked bluntly and watched as Mustang and Ed exchanged a glance. He jumped on it. "What was that look?"

"He's not an alchemist." Ed admitted and held up a hand to stop the confused questions before they could be voiced. "He is using alchemy, don't get me wrong, but he is not an alchemist. He's had no training as an alchemist and before he got the stones, he admitted he was pretty much worthless as an alchemist. The stones have amplified what little talent he has and made it so he doesn't have to abide by alchemic law."

"If he doesn't have the training, that makes our job easier, right?" Garcia asked, hopeful this meant there was less danger to her family. Her hopes sunk when Ed and Mustang shook their heads.

"No. In fact, this could very well make him even more dangerous." Mustang told her somewhat regrettably.

"How?" This time it was DiNozzo who spoke.

"Because he has no clue what he's doing. He has no idea how alchemy works, he has no clue about the stones beyond 'they make my alchemy more powerful'. He doesn't understand the kind of power he's got and that will make him dangerous." Edward said but DiNozzo and a few others didn't look like it had clicked for them.

"Think of it this way. Those stones are a gun. Moore is a small child. He is likely to kill himself or someone around him because he hasn't been taught how to handle a gun or what the consequences are of pointing it at someone and pulling the trigger." Mustang explained. "Now, Moore knows the stones are dangerous and he knows he wants to kill us," he gestured to himself and Ed, "but he doesn't know those stones will run out of uses eventually and each time he uses them, he is one use closer to his intended transmutation rebounding and that is not something people come out of unscathed. What's more, from what Fullmetal told me about the fight here, the transmutations Moore has used are ones that are very popular fighting moves. You lot saw Fullmetal make those daggers out of the car," this time he gestured to Gibbs and his team, "then saw Moore make the same ones out of stone. I believe he is mimicking moves he's heard about or seen with his own eyes. Not only doesn't he know much about the stones, he knows the bare minimum about basic alchemy. He hasn't studied different arrays and he has no discipline in the science. This makes him dangerous because he is untrained in the weapon he is using."

"For the moment, we have another advantage." Ed said, trying to give something to counter what Mustang had just told them. "He doesn't know he can heal himself with the stones. It's not well known in Amestris that alchemy can be used to help heal people. Creta, one of our bordering countries, has amazing healing arrays but our countries have only recently started communicating with our words and not our fists so we haven't actually seen these arrays and really, only someone with extensive medical knowledge could perform them anyway. Another country, Xing, has something called alkehestry, which is similar to alchemy but not enough that I could use it, which they use for healing but, like I said, alkehestry is not alchemy. So for the most part, Amestrian alchemists don't know alchemy can be used to heal. Since we've already established that Moore is not even an alchemist, he wouldn't know about the healing arrays so he's probably still out there with the injuries I dealt him." Edward told them but noticed the glances the FBI team gave each other. He caught Reid's eye and raised a questioning brow.

"You said Harding and Moore are basically brothers, right?" Spencer asked and Ed nodded. "Well, we saw Harding heal himself when we fought him. Wouldn't he have told his brother something that important?" Ed saw everyone's interest pique and seemingly simultaneously lean forward in their seats for their response.

"Yes but I'm confident Harding discovered he could heal himself while in this dimension and Mustang and I took him out before he could go home and share that information with his brother." Ed pointed out. "Though there is the chance that Moore will figure it out by accident because the universe is a special kind of arsehole and seems to have it out for me." He grouched, slumping back in his chair petulantly. Several of the agents snorted at that.

"Could he go to a hospital to be treated?" Mustang asked suddenly and Ed sat up straight again.

"He could." Hotch said after a moment. "Doctor's take an oath to protect their patients confidentiality so the police won't get a call if Moore tells them not to. We can put out feelers at hospitals and GP clinics for someone matching Moore's description and wounds. Do you think he's likely to go to a hospital?" Hotch asked them and Ed didn't even have to think.

"With the injuries I inflicted? He probably should." He answered honestly. Some of the agents looked surprised and some looked a little skeptical. Ed wanted to roll his eyes at them but he somehow managed to not do that. "That wound to his shoulder would be deep. I made those throwing knives about 10-12cm and it was buried into shoulder up to it's hilt. Then there was his arm." Ed seemed to wince a little in sympathy.

"You broke it." Gibbs said and Ed's golden eyes locked his ice-blue ones.

"I didn't break it." Ed said. "I  _crushed_  it. At the very least, I crushed his wrist and snapped one or both of his arm bones. If he hasn't discovered the healing alchemy, he'd need surgery to fix his arm if he ever wanted it to mend properly." A few of those sitting around looked slightly pale.

"How'd you manage that?" Morgan asked, morbid curiousity getting the best of him. Ed raised his right hand and waggled his fingers at him. Morgan's mouth fell open in a silent 'oh' and he nodded, leaning back in his chair. Understanding flashed across the faces of the rest of the BAU but the NCIS agents looked even more confused, a couple staring at his hand as if they could figure it out if they stared hard enough. Ed felt a hand on his shoulder and looked over to see Mustang gripping it lightly.

"You should probably tell them." He said, not unkindly. Ed still hesitated and Mustang got it. People in Amestris weren't always kind to those with automail, treating them like freaks and he was sure Edward hadn't been spared that treatment just because of his age or military rank. "They'll more than likely find out anyway considering you create your go-to weapon out of it." He pointed out and saw Ed reluctantly accept the truth of his words. Sighing, Ed pulled his right glove off and held up his hand, wiggling his fingers so the metal glinted in the lights.

"You have a metal hand." DiNozzo pointed out bluntly. Gibbs smacked him across the back of the head and sent him a look that had Tony look sheepish. "Sorry." He said to Edward, who was busy putting the glove back on.

"Don't worry about it." Ed shrugged nonchalantly as he fidgeted with the glove. Mustang wasn't the only one who saw the comment had a bit more of an effect than Ed was letting on. He cleared his throat. "It's called automail. It's my worlds answer to prosthesis. It's much stronger than a normal limb. It's why I was able to crush Moore's wrist. The only way he wouldn't have gotten injured from that grip is if his arm was automail as well and even then it would have to be as good as, or better than, mine." He explained before they had a chance to ask. Mustang squeezed his shoulder a little tighter before removing his hand entirely and Ed would never admit to anyone that he missed the touch, just a little. He could see the question a couple of them wanted to ask and he rolled his eyes. "Just ask." He directed this question mostly to Ziva, DiNozzo and McGee, two of whom looked a little guilty at being so transparent.

"How much of your arm is automail?" Ziva was the one to ask, showing no shame at how curious she was. Ed could appreciate that.

"The entirety of it. Including the shoulder joint. And approximately half of my left leg." Ed told her and heard sharp inhales coming from the NCIS group. "Don't bother asking how it happened because I won't tell you." He said sharply, eyes daring someone to try. No one was dumb enough to.

"Okay, so now we've all caught up, we need to come up with a plan to find Moore and get him back. I'm assuming you two want to get him back to your country to stand trial for the robberies?" Vance asked the alchemists and Ed shrugged, leaving Mustang to answer.

"It would be best if he came with us, yes." Mustang answered after a moment. Vance nodded before looking contemplatively at the BAU.

"Would your team be interested in a joint investigation?" Vance asked and Hotch raised a brow. "There was, after all, a random attack against these headquarters and one of our guests and I believe we could use some official help profiling him."

"And unofficially?" Rossi asked, his brow raised in an identical fashion to Hotch's. Vance's eyes glinted approvingly.

"Unofficially, you've gone up against a rogue alchemist wielding a stone before. Your experience may be helpful to us. There is also the fact that, right now, Edward and the Brigadier-General certainly trust you more than they trust us." Vance told them and Edward once again groaned theatrically at the use of Mustang's rank, muttering about how the man's ego was going to get even bigger. Mustang ruffled his hair, knowing how much the blonde hated it and was rewarded with a snarl and promise of revenge as Edward fixed his hair. JJ and Garcia smiled at the exchange. Rossi and Hotch seemed to have a silent conversation before coming to an equally silent agreement.

"We'd be happy to offer any assistance we can." Hotch told him before he gave Vance a rare, small smile. "You'll have to coordinate with our boss, Erin Strauss, though. We didn't give her a proper reason when we left Quantico. Technically, we've been placed on emergency-call only so we can catch up with some overdue paperwork." Mustang made some kind of victorious noise and Ed rolled his eyes.

"I'd imagine their reason for not being up to date with their paperwork is because they've been busy catching serial killers or psychopaths or whatever. Your only excuse, Mustang, is that you're a lazy bastard with a death wish and some vague fantasy of finally being successful at avoiding your paperwork and Miss Riza's bullets." Mustang made an indignant noise at the insinuation that caused Ed to look thoroughly unimpressed. "The last mission you got off your arse to investigate instead of pawning it off to one of us was when Harding was reported AWOL." Mustang spluttered a bit but he knew he couldn't refute that argument. Ed smirked at his defeat. Their exchange caused a ripple of amusement to flow through the group.

"I'll contact Erin. She owes me a favour and I may be able to cash in on it." Vance assured Hotch and his team.

"Well, then it looks like we'll be working together." Hotch said with a nod. "Where do you want to start?"


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Edward and Mustang find themselves back in another dimension but this time they're in a new city with new people and facing another rogue alchemist, only this one is out for their blood. With Truth not being involved, they must figure out how to take down the alchemist and get home. New friends and old come together to help them but will it be enough?

Abby Sciuto had been in the middle of a staring competition with Major Mass-Spec when Doctor Mallard had come through her doors, much to the black-haired woman's surprise.

"Ducky!" She cried as she wrapped him up in an enthusiastic hug before dragging him over to stand in front of her mass-spectrometer. "Tell Major Mass-Spec to play nice." She whined as she glared at the aforementioned machine.

"What's he doing?" Ducky asked, frowning at the machine in confusion. He didn't understand the majority of things in the forensic scientist's lab but he knew she was very attached to her things and was happy to play along.

"He's not co-operating. He needs to run samples for a case Agent Miller's working on and his first two results were weird." She explained, pouting slightly. Ducky turned a slightly disappointed look at the machine.

"You give Abby the results she needs, please." He told the machine and was rewarded with a blindingly bright smile from his coworker.

"Thanks, Ducky." She said as she squeezed him with the arm she had wrapped around his shoulder. The platform, knee-high, leather boots she was wearing squeaked a little as she abruptly turned around to face him, her twin pigtails swinging with the movement. "What brings you down here, Ducky? More samples?" She asked, glancing at his empty hands.

"Nothing like that." He chuckled slightly. "No, I merely wondered what you thought to young Edward." He asked only to answered with a confused look.

"Who's Edward?" Ducky frowned at her answer. He could've sworn she would've met him by now.

"The teenager Gibbs and the others had with them." Ducky told her and Abby shook her head to say she still didn't know. "He was brought to see me, oh, about two hours ago now. He had a couple of injuries but nothing serious. I patched him up and they left. I thought for sure they'd have been down to see you by now." Abby pouted and leant up against one of her benches.

"No, I haven't seen Gibbs or anyone all day. I haven't gotten any samples from any crime scene with their name on it today either. If this Edward was involved in one of their cases, it has to have been an old one. Even then, Gibbs would've asked me to pull up things from evidence to run again and he hasn't." Abby was moving to her main computer now, Ducky following her dutifully as she sat in her chair and started typing. "I haven't had an e-mail from anyone asking for me to pull up an old case." She crossed her arms as she leant back in her chair and twirled to face Ducky. She was surprised to see he wasn't surprised at the news.

"I doubt Edward was involved in one of our cases, old or current." Ducky said before elaborating upon catching sight of Abby's raised brow. "The way he appeared was rather unusual. I assumed you already knew because I had assumed you'd met him by now." He said apologetically.

"How'd he turn up?" Abby asked, waving off the unnecessary apology, leaning forward curiously.

"He appeared out of the sky from a flash of light as Gibbs and the others left to respond to a case." Ducky told her and she let out a laugh.

"That's a good one, Ducky." She giggled before catching sight of the doctor's serious face and her laughter stopped abruptly. "Wait, are you serious?" She asked and Ducky nodded.

"Quite. Gibbs and Ziva told me while we waited for the young lad." Abby was gobsmacked. She knew Gibbs, and to an extent, Ziva wouldn't make something like this up but the idea was just so absurd she couldn't believe it. She immediately spun her chair back so she was facing the computer again and started typing away furiously. "What are you doing?" Ducky asked as he watched her fingers fly across the keyboard.

"Hacking our security cameras." She answered and Ducky leant in to see what she pulled up. "I'm assuming they were in the car park? Roughly what time?" She asked once she was in.

"You'd be correct and they were in the morgue by 11:30 so 11?" Ducky told her and she nodded, pulling up the feed for the camera that covered the car park and entered the time code she wanted. Ducky had been almost correct. At 10:53 that morning, they watched as Gibbs, Tony, McGee and Ziva all left the building and headed for their vehicles only to stop as a flash of light appeared to their left and a body dropped from it. The cameras weren't able to pick up much sound but they saw that person, quickly identified as Edward by Ducky, stand up before moving into a defensive position as the four agents drew their weapons. Vance appeared on screen and they talked for a minute before the growing crowd quickly dispersed. It took a couple more minutes but eventually Edward was walking with them into the building and their weapons had been holstered once more. The camera footage kept going as the two of them stared at it, neither having truly believed what they'd heard until just now.

"He fell like six metres from the ground." Abby said, disbelievingly.

"I know." Ducky was equally shocked. He hadn't even realised he hadn't fully believed Gibbs until right now.

"From a flash of light." She said. "There wasn't any sort of thing he could have fallen from. He just appeared from that light." She jumped up from her chair, startling Ducky enough that he almost fell from where he was half-leaning on her desk.

"I know." He said, trying to calm her down but she was already pacing in front of her desk.

"How does that even happen?" She asked, throwing her hands in the air as she faced the elderly man before resuming her pacing. "I mean, seriously! What is the explanation for that? People don't just fall from the sky with no explanation! It looked like magic or something!" She stopped in her tracks before looking at Ducky with a strange expression. "Maybe he is magic. Or he's an alien." She said, starting to sound awed.

"I don't know about magic but I doubt he's an alien, Abby." Ducky told her almost regretfully. He saw her mouth open and guessed the question she was about to ask. "Remember, I examined him. He's definitely human. Although..." He trailed off, obviously not realising he started speaking that sentence out loud.

"Although what?" Abby asked demandingly. Ducky shook his head.

"He had the most unusual coloured eyes." He told her and she beckoned him, rather impatiently, to elaborate. "His eyes were gold. I don't mean light brown, I mean they were gold. The same colour as his hair." He told her and watched as her own eyes widened.

"I've never, ever heard of someone with gold eyes. There's no way he's from around here. I don't think gold eyes are even genetically possible." Abby almost whispered before heading back to her computer and bringing up a few more camera feeds.

"What are you doing now?" Ducky asked, leaning forward to watch her, brow creased quizzically.

"Going through more of the camera feeds. I wanna see if he does anything else weird." She told him and he leant in closer to see the camera feeds clearer. She gave a little smirk as she pulled up the four cameras she thought would be most useful. They watched as Edward was escorted from the shower down to Ducky's morgue then lead back up to the conference room the team usually put family members or people they weren't considering suspects in to talk to. She brought up the feed for the camera in there and they watched Edward make a phone call and Vance walk in. They saw how Edward handed over the phone and move immediately out of reach while Vance spoke to whoever was on the other end of the line before nodding to whatever the other speaker said and hung up. Then they left the room and Abby managed to track them to MTAC and she placed the recording on fast-forward so they weren't waiting around forever. "What do you think they're talking about in there? Maybe Edward is from some hidden country, like Wakanda." Abby mused out loud as they waited for the group to reappear.

"Wakanda?" Ducky asked, rather curious. Abby flashed him a grin.

"It's a country out of a comic book, Duckster." She patted his arm as he gave an 'ah!' of understanding. There was movement on the camera, a red and gold blur Abby barely glimpsed, and she re-wound the tape before playing it back. They watched Edward leap from the balcony to the floor below and make it to the elevator before Gibbs and the others were even on the staircase. "Wow, he can move." She commented as she switched camera feeds and found him in the car park once again.

"He must've have some sort of training to land a move like that without hurting himself." Ducky sounded a little like he wanted to lecture the boy but soon their attention was grabbed by two more figures falling from the sky. Abby opened her mouth to say something but she felt her jaw drop instead as she watched the ensuing fight unfold. They barely breathed as they watched one of the two newcomers engage the blonde in a fight and Abby let out a gasp of terror as she saw an attack being launched at her family. She felt her heart warm up to the blonde as he intercepted the attack, despite the fact that he knew he would leave himself wide open and both her and Ducky both full-body winced as Edward was slammed into a car. The rest of the fight kept them similarly enraptured. It ended when the second stranger who'd fallen unleashed some pyro attack that had Abby falling a little in love with him and saved Edward from the knives being hurtled his way while he was dazed. They watched as Edward and the team realised the man had disappeared and watched as they spoke before Edward touched something on his arm and moved away from them a few minutes later to clap his hands and suddenly the car park looked completely untouched. Though, Abby couldn't say the same thing about the sedan Edward was thrown into.

"Did we seriously just watch a magic fight?" Abby asked as soon as she was able to pick her jaw back up off the floor. Ducky was still lost for words, a rarity for the Englishman. "I mean, there is no other feasible explanation my science brain can think up right now. Those three men used magic, or something very similar! I need to know what happened! I need all the details! I need to talk to McGee." Abby said decisively as she picked up her desk-phone and dialed McGee's mobile only for it to go to message bank. "Timothy McGee, you call me back the second you get this. No! You come down to my lab the moment you've listened to this. I need to know how and why there's a real-life wizard in our building. Get your skinny butt down here or there will be consequences." She put the phone back in it's cradle a tad harsher than necessary. Though, the noise seemed to break Ducky out of his little stupour.

"My dear, I think we just witnessed real magic." Ducky finally said, eyes twinkling with glee as Abby grinned back. At that moment, his brain finally finished processing everything he saw and he scowled slightly. "Edward was injured. No one has called me to check his injuries. Where is he now?" He asked, gesturing to the surveillance feeds. Abby checked for him and they watched as he and the black-haired man disappeared into a small office space and emerge minutes later and get escorted to the Director's office. Abby rolled through the film and they were surprised to see seven people enter Vance's office an hour or so, in real time, after the team and the two magic-wielder's had.

"I don't think they've left the Director's office, Ducky." Abby told him as the footage continued to roll forward at a fast pace and no one had entered or left. "Who do you think those people were?" She asked curiously. She had a nagging feeling she recognised a couple of them but she wasn't able to place them.

"I think you'll find they're federal agents, of some description." Ducky told her. The way some of them walked and their general body language in the video feed made him suspect as much. Abby snapped her fingers suddenly.

"They're FBI!" She exclaimed, fingers once again tapping away at her keyboard. The camera footage disappeared and a search engine took its place. Abby spoke as she typed. "They're part of an elite unit called the BAU. I'm pretty sure I've seen a couple of them on TV before." Abby pulled up numerous articles, some containing pictures of one, a few or all of the agents they'd seen. "Yeah, here we are." Abby murmured as she pulled up one article that had all seven of them in it before reading it quickly and enlarging the photo for Ducky. "So this was taken when they were in Franklin, Alaska, to solve a case. According to the article, these are Agents Aaron Hotchner, David Rossi, Derek Morgan, Jennifer Jaraeu and Emily Prentiss, Doctor Spencer Reid and Tech Annalist Penelope Garcia. They were able to successfully find and subdue the killer, though a civilian who's mum had been killed was shot by one of the agents when he tried to kill the accused." Abby summarised the article for the older man, pointing to each person who she assumed corresponded with the name she read out.

"Well, that solves that mystery. I wonder why they are here though." Ducky mused out loud and even Abby had to concede that she had no real ideas. As the only forensic scientist, she was privy to all of the cases being worked and, assuming there was a body involved, so was Ducky yet neither of them could think of even one case the BAU would be called out for. Unless...

"They must be here because of those three." Abby said and Ducky nodded in agreement. It was, after all, the only conclusion that made sense. Abby's lab phones ringtone made them jump before she quickly snatched it up and, after glancing at the caller I.D., she answered with a demanding tone. "McGee! Why are you calling me? I told you to-" She was cut off by McGee's voice on the other end of the line but Ducky couldn't make out what the younger man was saying. Abby's eyes widened slightly before her lips formed a grin that had a whisper of mischief about it. "Okay, we'll be up soon." She said, ending the conversation and replacing the phone before she turned to face Ducky. "I've been asked to go to the morgue, collect you and head up to Director's office. Wanna find out how someone is able to use magic with me?" She asked and Ducky's grin was answer enough as she looped her arm with his and dragged him to the elevator.

* * *

 

Ed's entire back and left upper arm felt like one, massive bruise. He was 96% certain that if it weren't made of automail, his right upper arm would be included in that pain. Honestly, fuck Moore. Fuck Moore and fuck that car for being there. The blonde tried to roll his shoulders and stretch his muscles to relive some of the tenseness without being too obvious about it but he was fairly certain that most of everyone in the room saw him do so. They certainly saw him flinch reflexively when a hand dropped on his left shoulder, albeit gently, but even that slight pressure caused pain to flare. He looked over his left shoulder and saw the guilty and apologetic expression on Reid's face.

"I'm sorry." The young doctor said as he retracted his hand. "I didn't realise you were hurt." His face was stricken and Ed found he wasn't even mad. Turns out, being mad at Reid was like being mad at Alphonse.

"Don't worry about it. You startled me more than anything." Ed told him but he could see his half-truth wasn't being bought but Reid nodded instead of pressing. "What's up?"

"Nothing. I just wanted to make sure you were okay." Reid told him and Ed could see the honesty there. "I picked up on the fact that you're likely to hide injuries and deal with them yourself pretty quickly last time you were here." Reid smirked slightly and Ed found himself grinning slightly.

"I'm not a big fan of doctors and I can patch myself up just as well." Ed shrugged nonchalantly and his grin grew slightly wider at Reid's unamused raised brow. "I'm fine. Mustang has field medic training and if any of my injuries were concerning, he'd have ordered me to see a doctor. I wouldn't have but the point is he didn't so I'm fine." Reid's smile was fond and bemused at that but he accepted what Ed told him and let the subject drop in favour of more scientific and enjoyable topics. Everyone was busy acquainting, or reacquainting in the case of the alchemists and FBI, so they could start brainstorming on how to go after Moore. The NCIS agents wanted to know more about Harding, his crimes and his death and Ed was more than happy to let Mustang and the FBI deal with those questions. He didn't like talking about his role in Harding's demise. He did have one eye and ear on the others and noted Gibbs tapping McGee on the shoulder and whispering instructions the young agent immediately followed. The phone call he made was quiet and brief before he hung up and gave Gibbs a short nod. The older man seemed satisfied and turned back to observing the others, locking eyes with Edward for a brief moment. Mustang broke the mutual assessing looks and interrupted his conversation with Reid.

"I completely forgot to ask before but how's your automail holding up after that fight?" The raven-haired alchemist asked and Ed shrugged.

"It's not damaged." He said simply and rolled his eyes at his commanding officer's disbelieving look. "Despite what you may think, automail is tough to destroy. I just make it look easy because someone keeps sending me on missions hunting down dickheads who'd rather fight than surrender and most of the time they're very aggressive about not going to jail. Or I go up against people like Scar." He added that last part as an afterthought. He shook his head slightly. "The point is, my automail is fine. Admittedly, I'm gonna have to be a little more careful with it than normal." He said, somewhat reluctantly as he eyed his right arm.

"Why?" Reid asked and Ed's heart jolted guiltily as he realised he'd forgotten the young genius was there.

"I don't have my mechanic here and I don't have Truth's protection, such as it is." He answered simply and Reid hummed in understanding.

"Hopefully Moore goes down without too much hassle." Mustang said. "I don't want to deal with two exceptionally angry alchemists." He smirked.

"Hilarious." Ed rolled his eyes at him and Reid laughed at the familiar banter.

"Oh. Hey, who's Scar?" He asked suddenly and elaborated at Ed's silent gesture to. "You mentioned him just now." Ed let out a small 'huh' before answering.

"He was a serial killer who targeted State Alchemists. He very nearly took me out after he destroyed my arm. Turns out he was an Ishavalen and was avenging his people we massacred by going after every State Alchemist he could find." Ed told him simply. "Now, he's working with our military to try and rebuild his land and relocate any Ishvalen refugees back there. We write each other letters. He's doing well and adjusting as best as can be expected." Reid wasn't the only one who looked flabbergasted at what he just said.

"You're in contact with Scar? Since when?" Mustang asked, not realising their conversation was drawing the interest of the others.

"Um, the first letter came about three weeks after Al was hospitalised? He wanted to apologise for trying to kill me and to thank me for my offer to help them rebuild once Al was released. He said he'd had time to look back and reflect on his past choices and realised that going after me, someone who was barely a toddler at the time the civil war broke out, and trying to kill me for something I had no hand in just because I joined the same unit that did was misguided and he asked for my forgiveness." Ed told him, either oblivios to or ignoring the almost anxious way Mustang had asked.

"How'd you respond?" Prentiss asked, startling Ed slightly, her curiosity getting the better of her. Ed shrugged a shoulder.

"Told him he didn't need to ask forgiveness. I didn't hold a grudge against him, especially after he handed over the information that practically saved our country from Father. Told him it wasn't the first someone tried to kill me because they had a grudge against the military. Now he sends me updates on Ishaval and I send him updates on Al and whatever else has happened. Dude's pretty chill now that he's worked out his anger issues." Ed told her and was surprised when Emily, and a couple others, chuckled slightly. "What?" He asked, confused.

"Only you could make friends with someone who was once deadset on killing you, Fullmetal." Mustang sighed, amused himself now that his racing heart had calmed down a little. There was a knock on the door, catching everyone's attention, and Vance answered it. Ed caught a glimpse of silky, black hair and knew the man was talking to Maria. Vance nodded and opened the door up wider to grant entrance to two more people before closing it gently behind him.

Ed recognised Doctor Mallard right away but he was slightly shocked to see the young woman with him. He'd never seen anyone dressed quite like she was. He took in the massive platform boots, short skirt with dangling chains, black shirt with a cutsie skull and crossbones design, the lab coat with its sleeves pushed up to her elbows, black fingernail polish, the numerous bracelets, what he suspected was a dog collar, her tattoos and finally the two pigtails that gave her an innocent, carefree feel. Her eyes immediately fell on himself and Mustang and he saw the small flash of recognition go through them but he was quite certain he'd never seen her before. He was very certain he'd remember her.

"Everyone? This is Doctor Mallard, our coroner, and Miss Abby Sciuto, our forensic scientist. I'll let you introduce yourselves later but for now we've asked them up here for their inputs. I believe their expertise and experiences may come in handy." He told them and everyone who didn't already know the two either murmured a hello or nodded. Vance gestured for them to sit down at the table and the few who weren't did as they were asked. Vance spoke again before taking his seat. "We'll catch these two up on what's happened and go from there." Vance decreed, sitting down. Abby raised a hand almost sheepishly and Vance raised a brow for her to speak.

"Um, we kinda already know what happened in the parking lot. We just don't really understand what happened or why you guys are here." She admitted, gesturing to the BAU.

"Do I want to know how the two of you found out?" Vance asked, voice sounding very slightly amused.

"Probably not, no." Abby shook her head and Vance huffed.

"Let's start with that and then move on to what we need to do." Vance said, nodding to the alchemists and FBI agents. Ed internally sighed before joining in on the resulting explanations about how they got here, what alchemy was and why the FBI were here. He hoped this explanation would be quick and the resulting discussion would go smoothly. He was rather tired and sore, after all. Seriously, Moore could go fuck himself.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Edward and Mustang find themselves back in another dimension but this time they're in a new city with new people and facing another rogue alchemist, only this one is out for their blood. With Truth not being involved, they must figure out how to take down the alchemist and get home. New friends and old come together to help them but will it be enough?

The speech to bring Abby and Ducky up to speed seemed to go by faster than the other times they've had to give it. Practice makes perfect, Ed supposed. The one thing that never got old was watching the multitude of expressions form on the other's faces. Abby was especially fun to watch. She looked mortally offended by their claim their alchemy was science and not actual magic. Both her and Ducky were awed by his automail, something that caused Ed to feel like he was back in Rush Valley that first time. The only difference was he was being asked all of the technical and biological aspects of his automail and he did his best to answer them but he wasn't an automail mechanic and he'd never really been interested in how it worked since he trusted Winry to make her very best automail for him. So he never bothered learning how it worked or how to fix it because he knew Winry's automail could withstand almost everything he put it through.

"So, what you're basically saying is that you two," Abby pointed to Mustang and Ed, "are aliens from another world and you use science magic to do things and fight. You met this lot," a gesture to the FBI, "three months ago because you," back to Ed, "made a deal with a god and it cashed it in by way of getting you two to team up with them," she gestured to the alchemists and FBI, "to take down a rogue alchemist. Now you're back here because the rogue alchemist's brother decided to get even and throw you two back into our world so you'd be stuck here and he could kill you at his leisure?" Ed thought about and nodded.

"Yup, that about sums it up." He said, happy he wasn't going to be asked to explain it again. Her eyes widened with glee and Ed was uncomfortably reminded of Winry right then. It was the same look that made him fear for his bank account and/or automail. He pointed a finger at the raven-haired scientist. "No. Whatever you're thinking, it's a firm no." Gibbs looked amused at her pout, which was the first real expression Ed thought he'd seen on his face so far.

"I wasn't gonna say anything!" She protested but Ed didn't look overly convinced. There was a snort of laughter from DiNozzo, who immediately shut up at the glare she sent his way. Yup, that glare looked very much like a certain blonde mechanic's as well. Ed tried to imagine Abby as a blonde but he quickly dismissed the idea of Abby being Winry's double. They were similar in obsessive nature only. Vance cleared his throat to get everyone's attention.

"Now that everyone is up to speed, we need to discuss our plan." He said, casting a gaze over the group. "Miss Sciuto, please go with Agents DiNozzo, Prentiss and Morgan to the car park. I'd like you three to collect samples and anything else you can find to help us go up with finding Moore. Miss Garcia, would you accompany Agent McGee to our Cyber Unit? I'd appreciate your help with using our cities cameras to track down Moore's movements. McGee, pull up surveillance cameras from the car park and get a shot of Moore's face to use to track him and help Miss Garcia where you can. Agent David, McGee will send you the image he uses. Once you've received it, put out a BOLO. Make sure you advise local police that he is extremely dangerous and should not be approached by anyone other than us. Agent Jaraeu, I believe you're role is as a liaison with local police and the media, am I correct?"

"Yes, sir." JJ's blonde hair shimmered as she nodded.

"Good. Once Agent David has released the BOLO, I'd appreciate you taking the photo and holding a press conference. Let the public know he's wanted for an attack on our headquarters and diplomatic guest. Tell them they shouldn't approach as he's volatile and likely to attack anyone. If the media asks, tell them you're here at my invitation. Agents Hotchner and Rossi, would you be willing to sit down with Agent Gibbs and the Brigadier-General? Go over everything from when your team was assigned the Harding case through to the alchemists going home and your official report. Doctors Reid and Mallard, would you sit down with Edward? Go over his fights with Moore in more detail. We need to know any injuries and how they'd affect him, mentally and physically. I'll call Strauss and officially request your assistance." Vance said as he stood up. The others all nodded, even Ed was good with the plan. Before any of them could leave though, Vance spoke up again. "I think it should go without saying that the Brigadier-General and Edward go nowhere alone. I want at least two agents with each of them any time they're out of this building." Edward groaned slightly. He knew why but he still didn't like being babysat.

"You'll live, Fullmetal. Something I suspect is the point to us having a guard." Mustang said, smirking at the blonde's irritated expression. Ed just flipped him off.

* * *

 

Edward followed Ducky and Reid down to the morgue. He knew Mustang, Rossi, Gibbs and Hotch were in the conference room he'd called Garcia from. Not that he was worried about being separated from Mustang or anything. He just liked knowing where everyone was. He'd stopped Morgan before he left and asked if he could find one of the knives Moore had made for him. He wanted to examine it and see if the way it was made could give him any clues about his alchemic technique, or lack there of. The FBI agent had agreed and they both followed their respective groups.

Ed would've liked to have said that he got straight into the discussion when the three of them got down there but he got distracted by the technology in the room. Even the autopsy tools were far more advanced than anything they had and Ducky had indulged his curious questions until Reid reminded them they were actually down here for a reason. Ed grinned and went to scratch his neck sheepishly only to wince when he forgot about some of his injuries. Ducky's eyes immediately narrowed slightly.

"Do you want me to take a look at your newest injuries?" He asked in such a way that made Ed feel slightly guilty for doing so.

"Thanks, doc, but Mustang looked me over already." Ed told him but Ducky didn't look appeased by that answer. "He has field medic experience and it's not the first time he's patched me back up." Ed told him, shrugging a shoulder and stealing a chair. Reid was left to either lean against the desk or closest autopsy table. He chose the desk, making them sit in a way that reminded Ducky of Tony's campfires. Ducky decided to let the subject of the blonde's injuries drop. He had to trust that the raven-haired alchemist knew what he was doing.

"Okay." Ducky said and gave the blonde a small smile. "Let's talk about Moore than. I need you to be a descriptive and accurate with his injuries as you can, please." Ed nodded and his expression turned to one of concentration.

"Okay, well he wasn't really injured before I fell through the portal. Maybe some scratches and bruises. I can't remember any of mine or Al's attacks hitting him properly. Bastard was so quick and he knew the area extremely well. I didn't see any obvious injuries when he fell out of his portal when he and Mustang appeared." He told him as he played through the first fight before moving on. "Then we fought here and I landed plenty of hits. He's gonna be a lot of pretty colours in the morning." He sounded rather pleased about that. "I hit him hard, twice. First one was to his right shoulder. I buried a 10-12cm dagger into it right here," he indicated on his own shoulder, "and it was buried to the hilt. He yanked it back out and probably did some additional damage there. Then we fought hand to hand and I wasn't pulling my punches. I'm certain I bruised, if not cracked, some of his ribs on both sides. I fractured his cheekbone, knocked a couple of teeth out and gave him plenty of bruises. I may have also fractured his left collar bone but I can't be certain. I also completely crushed his left wrist and fractured, if not completely broke, one or both of his arm bones. After I did that, he managed to throw me off and Mustang intervened. I don't know how close his flames got to Moore so it is possible he got burned but I honestly wouldn't count on it." He told them. Ducky nodded to himself.

"Well, those ribs of his will make it difficult to move around quickly." Ducky mused. "If he doesn't seek medical attention for his wrist or his shoulder, they will become problems for him. He wouldn't be able to rotate his shoulder, which would mean that arm is next to useless. I'd be surprised if he'd be able to manage to lift his right arm at his shoulder joint more than a few degrees. He might be able to use his hand so long as he only lifts it at the elbow joint but I imagine that would still cause some discomfort. His left wrist is a different story. If he doesn't get help for that than it'll start healing incorrectly. He'll need to, at the very least, stabalise it with a cast or a splint. It'd be tough with his right arm but he could splint his left if he tried. But if he leaves it too long, that wrist will heal incorrectly and he'll never be able to use it." Ducky told them.

"Yeah but this is assuming he doesn't figure out healing alchemy." Ed sighed, leaning back in his chair. Reid's face turned thoughtful.

"If he does figure it out, would he be able to actually fully heal himself?" Reid asked. Ed leaned forward again.

"What do you mean?" Ed asked curiously. Reid straightened up.

"Well, you said that you would need medical knowledge to be able to use any healing array from, what was it, Creta?" Ed nodded and Reid continued. "Wouldn't he need medical knowledge as well?"

"Good question but no, he wouldn't." Ed shook his head. "The stone would be able to heal him completely without him needing much more knowledge than what the average human has. We have a skeleton comprised of 206 bones, we have muscles that cover that skeleton, a nervous system that helps us feel pain or temperature change, our heart pumps blood throughout our body, those sorts of things. In theory, all Moore has to do with the stone is think about healing the body part he needs to heal and it'll heal like it should. But that's just theory." Ed explained. "I mean, I can't remember reading anything about Harding having any medical knowledge and he was able to heal himself." He tacked on, almost like an afterthought.

"Bugger. I was hoping that if he tried to heal himself, he'd do it wrong because he wouldn't have the medical knowledge." Reid admitted. Ed gave a huff of laughter.

"Yeah, no such luck there." Ed sighed.

"Was there anything else you can remember that would be relevant?" Ducky asked and Ed went back through everything in his head one more time but ultimately shook his head.

"Without Al here, I can't be 100% sure any of our hits in Amestris landed. I was so focused on making sure Al and I didn't get hurt and keeping Moore from landing an actual attack to focus on any injuries he may have accumulated." He told them, sounding almost apologetic.

"Completely understandable." Ducky told him, patting him gently on his arm. Edward gave him a small smile in return.

"So, we've discussed the physical." Ed nodded to the two of them. "What does the information I gave you mean for Moore's mental state?" Reid was the first of the two of them to speak up.

"From what you've told me about him, he's obviously after revenge against you and Brigadier-General Mustang for the death of his adoptive brother. He's smart enough to have made the trap for you two but he didn't think it through enough. For starters, he didn't take into account your previous visit to our dimension. He didn't consider the possibility that you and the Brigadier-General-"

"Stop using his title. It takes forever to say and, despite his protests, he doesn't care about being called Mustang." Ed interrupted him and Reid shook his head fondly at him.

"Mustang, than. He didn't consider that the two of you may have people over here who could help you. Which means he wasn't prepared to face anyone other than the two of you. He didn't take into consideration that you would be able to use your alchemy here and he wasn't completely prepared for you when he got here. I know he still put up a fair fight but, from what I have heard of it and saw from Harding, he didn't put up as big a fight as he could have. I believe it's because he didn't expect you, your alchemy or the NCIS agents and he was slightly disorientated from the fall." Reid said and Ed nodded. Reid continued. "I believe these injuries will have made him more desperate to complete his goal. I don't think he'll be patient enough to set an elaborate trap up again. I'm honestly more inclined to believe that he would try and take you out while your back is turned. That way it's minimal effort on his part and he can be rid of you two in one blow." Ed groaned.

"So what you're saying is that we can't expect Moore to stay in hiding for long and that when he attacks, he'll be desperate and therefore more likely to make an exceedingly frenzied and dangerous move." Ed summed up and Reid nodded. "So, Vance sticking you poor buggers on babysitting duty for us wasn't really an overreaction?"

"No. In fact, if he hadn't, I can assure you that Hotch would've tagged us to stay with you." Reid told him and Ed sighed.

"But this will put you guys in danger as well! You don't have alchemy to help protect you and from what you just told me, Moore no longer strikes me as the kind of guy to take civilians into consideration. You guys would just be making yourselves obstacles for him to get rid of and I won't ask you to do that and I know Mustang wouldn't either." Ed told him, standing up and striding away a few feet before turning back to face them. "I won't have you guys getting hurt or injured because of us." He said, shaking his head.

"Ed, I'm telling you right now, my team won't let you go anywhere by yourself. You don't have a choice in this matter." Ed opened his mouth to protest Reid's words but the young doctor cut him off. "You're our friend. We don't want to see you hurt so we will help protect you. I can even guarantee you that Garcia will be helping as well. Every time you leave here, she'll probably by using the city's cameras to keep an eye on you."

"I don't want you guys getting hurt because of me." Ed's voice was very soft. "It was my idea to kill Harding. I set the trap. Mustang may have hit him with that fireball but I'm the one who trapped him so he couldn't avoid it. I killed him so this - you guys being in danger, us being back in this dimension, involving NCIS - is all my fault. You guys shouldn't even be involved in this. None of you should be." Ed gasped softly in surprise when Reid was suddenly there in his face and gripping the blonde's upper arms tightly.

"Ed, Harding's death was not your fault." Reid told him with no room for argument. "We all saw what Harding turned into when that stone rebounded. If you and Mustang hadn't killed him, he could have killed us and innocent civilians. Maybe we could've gotten the upper hand and shot him before that happened but the odds weren't on our side. We were hurt, low on ammo and exhausted." Reid didn't break eye contact the entire time he had been speaking, neither did he loosen his grip on Ed's arms. "I wish you hadn't been forced to do what you did but you had to and it happened. You can't change it, no matter how much you want to. But his death was not your fault. He was dead the moment he chose to fight us instead of coming in quietly. His death was his own fault. So please stop blaming yourself for it?" Much to his embarrassment, Ed's vision started turning slightly blurry. He blinked his eyes rapidly to clear them and nodded slightly. Reid squeezed his arms, though he could only feel his left arm, before he let go. Ed was glad Reid hadn't aggravated any of his wounds. He didn't want the young doctor to feel guilty for that. He did feel his cheeks redden when he heard Ducky clear his throat. He'd forgotten the elderly man was even there.

"What is a 'rebound'?" Ducky didn't comment on Reid's speech or Ed's reddening cheeks or his glistening eyes. Ed found himself grateful to the man for that and for asking a question that would stop Ed from remembering the sight of Harding's burned body and the smell that he swore he could smell all the time now.

Ed cleared his throat before answering. "A rebound is something that happens when an alchemist tries to perform a transmutation that they've screwed up somehow. Maybe they've miscalculated how much of something they need or gotten an ingredient or symbol completely wrong. They can cause a rebound simply by trying a transmutation beyond their power level. Rebounds can result in injuries or, if it's strong enough, death." Ed didn't notice himself gripping his automail arm slightly but the other two did. "Harding was slightly different. He was using a Philosopher's Stone which meant no transmutation was impossible for him to do. What happened was that the stone ran out of lives. When he performed a transmutation after the stone was depleted, it rebounded on him and it turned him into something not human. He was basically an animal, acting on his instincts and that made him even more dangerous. Once a rebound like that happens, there is no way to help the person recover." Ed finished explaining.

"Would Moore know that the stones can run out of lives?" Ducky asked and Ed pondered the question for a few moments.

"I don't know. We mentioned in our report that Harding had a stone and it rebounded so we were forced to kill him. But I don't know how much, if any, of our report Moore read or heard. Besides, he doesn't have only one stone. He has a few in his right pants pocket. I saw him reach in there when I stole the one he was using. But it is very possible he still doesn't know that every time he uses a stone, he's one transmutation closer to a rebound." Ed honestly couldn't give them an answer either way. He hoped Moore knew there was a limit. He wouldn't wish that sort of rebound on anyone.

"So he really is a ticking time bomb." Ducky mused out loud but before the other two could comment, something on Ducky's desk started ringing. Ed watched in fascination as Ducky pressed something on a small, silver, flat, rectangular device and Abby's face appeared.

"Hey, Ducky!" She called out brightly and Ed thought he could see someone near her. He was proven right when DiNozzo appeared next to her with his own greeting.

"Hello, you two. What can I do for you, my dear?" He asked the young scientist.

"Is Edward still down there with you?" She asked, getting straight to the point. Ducky confirmed he was. "Cool. Can you bring him up to the lab please? I got questions!" Ducky glanced over at the blonde and he nodded.

"Okay, Abby. We'll be there shortly." He told her and she gave them an enthusiastic wave before she did something on her end and the video call was cut off. Ducky turned to face the alchemist and FBI agent. "Shall we go and see what the young lady wants?" He asked.

"Might as well." Ed shrugged a shoulder and Reid nodded his agreement. Ducky led them to the elevator and pressed the button to take them to Abby's lab. The elevator dinged and opened the door and two of the three started at the music blasting from the lab. Ducky was the only one who wasn't affected and he led the way. DiNozzo, Morgan and Prentiss were standing near the mass-spec and chatting quietly amongst themselves while Abby did whatever it was she was doing. Ducky was very proud of Abby's self control to have the music as low as it was but he still went over to the system and turned it off, effectively gaining her attention.

"Ducky! I didn't hear you come in." She greeted, wrapping him in her normal hug before releasing him and facing the other two new arrivals, both of who had migrated to the other three. Morgan was in the process of ruffling Ed's hair, much to the blonde's disgust, before he handed a dagger over to him. Ed took it with a small 'thanks' before devoting his attention to it.

"What's he doing?" DiNozzo asked as they watched Ed scrutinise the dagger.

"I can hear you, ya know?" Ed said as he placed the dagger on Abby's table before clapping his hands and touching them to it, causing blue energy to crackle over it. Abby watched the display with childlike wonder. The energy dissipated and Ed faced Tony. "I was looking at how well it was made and what materials it was made from." He picked the dagger up and lightly bounced it on his palm. "Is there anywhere in here I can throw this? Like at a wall or something? I'll fix the damage." He asked, looking at Abby directly and she debated for a moment.

"Sure. You can throw it in the other room at the wall." She led him through the glass door that separated her lab and her office. She didn't want her place damaged but she wanted to see more of this alchemy more. They didn't pay attention to the fact that they were being followed by everyone else. Ed dipped his head in thanks before standing at the other end of the room and turned to face her desk and the wall behind it. She did have pictures up as decoration but there was enough blank space that he wouldn't risk her art. Taking up his stance, he decided to use his left hand as he wanted to test the balance of the dagger, amongst other things, and he couldn't do that with his right hand. He zeroed in on the spot he wanted to hit and took a moment to get a feel for the dagger before drawing his arm back and launching it.

* * *

 

Even though they had seen him in a fight or launching his own daggers, with the exception of Abby and Ducky, everyone still watched in awe as Ed threw the dagger and it buried itself in the wall right between two of Abby's artworks. Ed straightened up and gave a small nod to himself before striding over the the dagger and pulling it back out and placing it in one of his pockets. He clapped and fixed the damage he made, as promised, and they watched, enraptured, while the blue electricity danced across the hole before disappearing once Ed removed his hand.

"What did you learn?" Reid asked once Ed starting walking back to join the group. Ed handed him the dagger to look at as he spoke.

"Okay so this is not well made. It's good but the thing about Philosopher's Stone is that they make practically all alchemy possible but you're still limited with your imagination and functioning knowledge. That dagger is sub-par, at best. I could certainly make something better in my sleep. Mainly because I have a tonne of experience making weapons and I was taught by someone who was practically an expert. But that is actually kinda my point. He has no clue how to make a dagger beyond the very basics; it needs a handle and the blade needs to be sharp. That dagger is also made from the material your car park is made from. He would have had no problem transmuting that material into something much better but he didn't. Plus the balance on that dagger is atrocious. The only reason I managed to hit where I was aiming was because I've had the training to use badly made knives well." He informed them, scoffing at the weapon in Reid's hands. Reid passed it back and Ed pocketed it again.

"Abby, you asked for Ed to come up here for something. What is it?" Ducky asked, being the first to remember that they were here for an actual reason. That made Abby startle a little as she had completely forgotten that she had asked Edward to come up to her labs.

"Yes! I was wondering if he'd give me some blood and hair samples so I can differentiate his and Moore's blood and hair that I found. Also, I want to look at his brain while he does alchemy." She grinned and Ed was once again reminded strongly of Winry.

"Blood and hair, yes. The brain thing? That's a no." Ed told her and looked completely unmoved by her pleading expression. DiNozzo watched this with fascination.

"How do you do that?" He asked as Ducky drew Abby away to get the things they'd need. Ed gave him a confused look so Tony elaborated. "How did you resist that expression? I've seen Gibbs fall prey to it a few times."

"I'm a big brother to my brother and a young girl who is the daughter of Mustang's best friend. I'm immune to pleading expressions." Ed deadpanned. After the fight with Father was over and he and Al were stuck in Central because of Al being hospitalised, Gracia reached out to Ed to see how he was going and he ended up staying with her and Elysia while Al recovered. Ed and Elysia had grown inseparable and Gracia had all but adopted Edward and Alphonse as her own children. Ed watched as Ducky disappeared out of the door and back into the elevator, if the 'ding' it made was any indication. He sent Abby a questioning look.

"He's gone to get the stuff he needs to draw your blood." She explained. "Are you sure I can't look at your brain while you do alchemy?" She asked, turning loose her puppy dog eyes and Ed shook his head.

"I'm not a lab rat. See if Mustang will do it because I won't. Sorry." Abby pouted but dropped the subject, realising she wouldn't win this. It was like trying to get Gibbs to stop drinking coffee. Not that she was stupid enough to ever suggest he do that. Ed seemed to relax minutely when she didn't push it.

"Wait, did he get injured at all?" She suddenly asked and Ed's brows furrowed in confusion before smoothing out in realisation.

"Mustang? No, I don't think so. He just used the one attack and I didn't see any blood on him when he was checking me over." Ed told her then shrugged. "I could be wrong. He could have nicked or something. You should ask him when you ask to watch his brain." Ed encouraged her. He was eager to see what Mustang's reaction would be. He'd probably be boring though.

"I will." Abby swore before her face brightened. "Do you want a tour of my lab while we wait for Ducky?" Ed nodded enthusiastically and flipped Morgan off when he gave a huff of laughter. Reid was happy to join in on the tour, asking Abby questions and helping her explain something to Ed when he had a question. Reid did, after all, have more experience translating something so Ed could understand it. They made it through half of the lab when Ducky came back and Ed offered up his left arm once he was sitting down. Ducky drew a vial for Abby and pulled the needle out and taped a cottonball over the small wound to help the blood clot. Ed took it off as soon as Ducky had turned around to give Abby the blood and pulled his sleeves down before the older doctor had turned around.

"Can we finish the tour now, Miss Abby?" Ed asked.

"Sure! Wanna see the ballistics lab next?" She asked and he nodded.

"I suggest keeping Ed away from the guns." Morgan piped up and Prentiss slapped him on the arm, which Ed gave her a smile for.

"I don't like using guns. I think you'll be safe." Ed said flippantly as he followed Abby to the last zone in her area and they went through the ballistics lab. Ed asked quite a few questions and learned a lot of helpful things he could take back to Amestris. They rejoined everyone in the main lab and Abby explained the remainder of the lab to Ed. Once she'd finished the tour, she got back to work. Ed ended up tagging along, asking questions about what she was doing and Abby was more than happy to explain everything to him. Morgan got a short phone call and ended up having to drag Ed away from Abby, on Gibbs and Hotch's combined orders.

"Let me know when you're done so I can look at the results." Ed said as he followed Prentiss, Morgan, Reid and DiNozzo out of the lab. Abby called out that she would and that he could come back down anytime as the elevator door closed. The elevator ride was short and soon they were following DiNozzo down the familiar path to the conference room.

* * *

 

Gibbs, Hotch, Rossi and Mustang all looked over at the door when it opened to emit the four of them. Gibbs gestured almost imperceptibly for DiNozzo to sit next to him and the two of them soon engaged in a whispered conversation. Ed joined Mustang, who was sitting down a chair away from Hotch and Rossi. The two men were joined by Reid, Prentiss and Morgan. Morgan bridged the gap between the alchemists and the two older FBI agents.

"You okay?" Mustang asked once Ed had sat down. The blonde glanced at him before he drew out the dagger to give to Mustang to look at.

"Yup. That's one of Moore's, by the way." Ed told him, gesturing to the dagger. "You okay?" He asked and Mustang nodded before beginning his own examination of the dagger. Ed left him to it and indulged in some people-watching. Gibbs and Tony were still talking amongst themselves and the agents were comparing notes, not bothering to keep their voices down. Mustang's own examination of the dagger didn't take very long before he was putting it on the table in front of him.

"Maes would be horrified with that dagger." Mustang told Ed, only the slightest signs of grief showing. Ed let out a soft snort of laughter.

"It at least confirms what we suspected." Ed said. "Moore has absolutely no training as an alchemist. He doesn't even have any knowledge of alchemy and what it can do. He certainly doesn't have any kind of weapon training and his fighting style is definitely more 'street brawler' than anything else." Mustang nodded before raising an interesting question.

"Then how did he throw you like he did? It looked like he was using nothing to do that." Mustang asked, leaning forward slightly so his arms were resting on the desk.

"Actually, I think he was using the air." Ed told him. It was something he had tried to figure out when he got thrown into the car and he couldn't come to any other conclusion. "I think Moore has a very broad view of how to use the stones. I think his thinking is basically 'think the thing and the stone does it'. He wanted me thrown backwards, thought it and pointed the stone at me. The stone interpreted that as sending a wall of air at me to knock me back. I think he did the same thing with the dagger." He gave the aforementioned weapon a dirty look. "He just thought about making daggers and aimed them for me and the stone did as he asked. He didn't think about things like balance or the material so the stone just gave him that." Mustang sighed.

"Perfect. Not only does he not have any training in alchemy but he hasn't bothered to even read anything about it or how to use it. He's going to end up blowing himself up and, with our luck, he'll take out us and/or a bunch of civilians." Ed wanted to make a quip about his pessimistic attitude but he couldn't bring himself to considering he was thinking pretty much the same thing. He yawned suddenly, covering his mouth and rubbing his eyes. He was still exhausted from the fight and using his alchemy but it was hitting him particularly hard now.

"You're sure you're okay?" Mustang asked, letting concern bleed into his voice as he reached out a hand to feel Ed's forehead. Al had told him a long time ago that sometimes when Ed looked sleepy, it was because he was actually sick but thankfully this wasn't one of those times. It spoke volumes that the blonde didn't push him away.

"Mhm. I'm just tired." Mustang frowned. Edward shouldn't be this tired just from today which made Mustang wonder when the last time Ed had gotten any good sleep was. Mustang couldn't stop himself running his fingers through the blondes hair as best he could while it was braided. Ed leaned into the touch slightly, yet another indicator as to how tired he was.

"Is he alright?" Gibbs asked and Mustang realised they had garnered the attention of everyone else. Ed scowled at the older man.

"I'm fine." He growled out. Mustang knew why he giving Gibbs attitude; he hated appearing weak in front of anyone he didn't trust 100%. It was only in recent months that Ed would admit he was hurt, tired or sick in front of Mustang himself.

"He used too much alchemy today and he didn't come out of that fight unscathed. Not to mention that dimension travel does do a number on you. We're both just tired." Was Mustang's more civil answer. Ed was muttering petulantly about how he was just fine but pretty much everyone was ignoring him.

"I'll talk to Vance about your sleeping situations." Gibbs said, standing and leaving the room as he pulled out his phone. Mustang focused on the FBI agents and noticed DiNozzo watching the two of them out of the corner of his eye.

"What are you lot doing?" He asked, keeping DiNozzo in his peripheral but ultimately not paying any attention to him. Ed was doing his best to stay awake out of sheer stubbornness.

"Comparing notes. With what you told Hotch and Rossi and what Prentiss and I found by going over security footage and what was left of the crime scene and Reid's suspicions from his talk with Ed, we're trying to come up with a profile for Moore." Morgan answered him and that had Mustang frowning slightly.

"Why? We know what he looks like and what he's after. Why come up with a profile at all?" Mustang asked. It seemed like a pointless exercise to him.

"Well, we're mainly doing this so when we submit our case report, our bosses won't question the fact that there isn't a profile in there. Naturally, we'd leave everything about you two and Moore's abilities and origins out of the official report but we still need the profile." Morgan told him and Mustang nodded. "The other reason is because it still could be useful when we eventually face Moore. This profile could help you two figure out a strategy to subdue Moore with minimal risk to yourselves or anyone else." Mustang had to admit that that was a very good reason. Gibbs had evidently finished his phone call since he was re-entering the room.

"Vance said you two can either camp in a hotel, preferably the same one the BAU will be staying in, or you can stay with one of us. Vance also would like me to tell you that if you go with the hotel room, NCIS will be happy to foot the bill since he assumes you don't have any US money." Gibbs told him and Ed barely held back a snort.

"That'd be a good bet." He looked at Mustang, meeting the man's gaze. "Up to you, Mustang." He said, honestly not caring either way. He was too tired to care about much.

"If it's definitely okay with Director Vance, we'll take up his offer to put us up in a hotel." Mustang decided. He didn't want to put the agents out any more than they already had. Gibbs nodded and lifted his phone back up to his ear. Evidently, he hadn't finished the phone call; he just kept the director on hold. They exchanged a few words before Gibbs hung up.

"DiNozzo." He said and Tony immediately sat up, alert and ready. "Vance is going to text you the hotel he's booked the alchemists in. Forward it to whichever BAU member organises the hotel they stay in so they can book rooms." Right as he finished saying that, Tony's phone alerted him to a new message. Reid helpfully passed along his phone so Tony could message JJ off of it. "Go find Ziva and see how her BOLO went then check in with McGee. Let me know what they've found."

"Yes, boss." Was all he said as he swept out of the room, barely giving the rest of them a glance.

"Why can't you be like that?" Mustang asked, elbowing Ed gently.

"Someone has to make sure your ego doesn't get too big and Miss Riza is too busy making sure you do your paperwork instead of being a lazy bastard." Ed quipped back before stifling another yawn.

"Why are you such a brat?" Mustang sighed.

"Why are you such a bastard?" Ed shot back and Mustang had to hide a fond smile behind his normal scowl. Hotch's phone dinged, drawing their attention.

"JJ has booked our hotel rooms." He told them when he noticed the questioning glance. His gaze stayed on Edward for a few moments longer. "Morgan, Prentiss and Reid. You guys take Edward and Mustang to the hotel and get some sleep. Rossi and I will finish this off and round up JJ and Garcia and we'll join you later." The three agents nodded and stood up, ready to head out. Mustang and Ed were a little slower to join them. Gibbs led them to the front of the building where the two cars the BAU had procured from their base in Quantico were waiting for them. They moved Rossi, Hotch, JJ and Garcia's go-bags into one vehicle and grabbed their own so they wouldn't have to mess around later tonight.

"We'll call if anything happens tonight. Get some sleep." Gibbs said as they climbed in, Mustang being the last to climb in as he watched Ed carefully clamber in himself.

"Thank you, Agent Gibbs." Mustang said once he was seated next to Ed. "We'll see you in the morning." Gibbs nodded and Morgan pulled the car away, heading for the exit.

They eventually made it out of security measures and were in front of the hotel in no time. After another few minutes they had parked the car, checked in and separated into their individual rooms. Ed and Mustang were paired up in the one room but neither complained. Ed simply shed his trademark coat, kicked off his shoes, pulled off his gloves and collapsed on the bed. Mustang stripped out of his uniform, leaving him in his white undershirt and boxers before collapsing in his own bed. The last thing he remembered before he fell asleep was watching Ed sleep and, not for the first time, being surprised out how young the blonde looked when he slept.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Edward and Mustang find themselves back in another dimension but this time they're in a new city with new people and facing another rogue alchemist, only this one is out for their blood. With Truth not being involved, they must figure out how to take down the alchemist and get home. New friends and old come together to help them but will it be enough?

Edward was honestly surprised when he woke up naturally instead of from a nightmare. He hadn't slept for nearly four days, excluding a couple of cat naps, because the last time he slept more than three hours, he woke up Alphonse, Elysia and Gracia with his screaming. Gracia had sat with him after making him some hot chocolate and prying Elysia off of his lap. The young girl had declared she was going to hug all of the bad dreams away and the innocent determination had reminded Ed so much of Alphonse when they were kids and Al was certain that their father would come home to them. He'd apologised for waking everyone but Gracia had dismissed the apology as unnecessary. She'd ushered him back to bed and stayed with him until he'd fallen asleep again but the next morning he'd decided to fall back on an old habit; stay awake as long as possible before falling into a deep, dreamless sleep. Not the healthiest method but it worked and that was good enough for him.

So, when he woke up in the hotel room feeling well-rested and content, he just laid in bed for a few minutes waiting to see if something bad was going to happen before he even managed to get up. He glanced over to the second bed in the room and saw that his commanding officer was not still in his bed. Ed sat up and looked around the room in an attempt to find him. The room came with an attached bathroom and the bedroom was separated from the living room, dining room and kitchen by a set of french folding doors. The bathroom door was shut and the shower was running so it was a safe bet that that was were his elusive commanding officer was.

Ed clambered out of his own bed and zeroed in on the bag he'd been carrying around that contained his clothes. Pulling them out, he laid them out on his bed and checked the damage and how filthy they were. His tank top had survived damage but had dried blood and dust all over it. His pants and black jacket had rips and were dirtier than his tank top so he decided to use a combination array he'd created specifically because he had grown tired of performing his cleaning and mending arrays all the time. The combination array used a bit more energy and was a little more complicated but got the job done quicker. Clapping his hands, his blue transmutation energy danced across his clothing, mending any tears and holes and pulling the dirt and blood from it to create a small, compressed sphere that he could throw in the bin. Once he was done, all he could do was wait for Mustang to get out of the shower so he could go for one.

Mustang emerged from the bathroom nearly fifteen minutes after Ed had climbed out of bed and mended his clothing. He was greeted by the sight of a shirtless Ed, who was busy pulling bandages and such off of his injuries in preparation of his shower. A glance at the clock on the wall told him it was only 6:30 in the morning but considering they crashed at around 8pm the previous evening, Mustang counted the uninterrupted 10 hours of sleep as a blessing. Edward certainly looked much better than he had the previous day, if you didn't count the multitude of bruises and cuts littering the blondes body. The numerous scars scattered across his torso and arms didn't help his case and ignited a flare of guilt in Mustang. Not for the first time, he wondered what Ed's life would be like if he hadn't gone and talked the 12 year old him into joining the military.

"About time you got out of the shower. Considering how useless water makes you, you'd think your showers would be shorter." Ed remarked as he finished removing the last bandage. Mustang moved past him to the kitchen to see if there was any coffee.

"Hilarious." He deadpanned, going through cabinets. "Go for a shower. I'll check your injuries again once you're out."

"You don't have to. I'm fine." Ed told him as he gathered his clothes up.

"I know but I'm still going to. I want to make sure you are okay." Mustang told him and Ed made a show of rolling his eyes.

"Whatever floats your boat, Mustang." Ed disappeared into the bathroom as Mustang shook his head. He found coffee and flipped the kettle on. It wouldn't be the best coffee he'd ever had but it'd do in a pinch. While the kettle boiled, Mustang looked through the previously unsearched cabinets for a first aid kit and came up with one that was rather well stocked. His hope was that he wouldn't have to use much of it though. Most of the injuries Ed had accumulated yesterday weren't deep enough to warrant bandages. At best, they'd need butterfly bandaids applied to them. He placed the first aid kit on the table and finished making his coffee. He debated for a moment before making one for Edward as well. The potential teasing would be better than the bitching he'd face if he didn't make it. At the very least, he'd be subjected to mutterings about him being a lazy bastard while Ed made his own coffee.

* * *

 

He'd made it halfway through his own coffee by the time Ed had emerged from the shower, blonde hair dripping wet and clinging to his bare back and shoulders. He carried his tank top and black jacket over his automail arm, dumping them on his bed once again before heading over to join Roy at the table. He glanced at the black coffee before taking a sip. It was only thanks to the fact that he used to the much worse coffee the military gave them that he didn't pull a face at the taste.

"Thanks." He mumbled, taking another sip. Coffee was coffee, after all, and he needed it if he was expected to be somewhat civil during the day.

"You're welcome." Mustang said and silence reigned for a few more minutes before Mustang spoke again. "Have you thought about how we are going to get home this time?" It was a question he had been thinking about whenever he wasn't focusing on something else.

"I've only got one decent idea." Ed admitted after a moment and, at Mustang's gesture, explained. "My idea is basically to put Moore down and steal his remaining stones. I can draw the array, I remember it perfectly but we need the stones or who knows what kind of price we'd have to pay?" Mustang just looked at him, mildly shocked and somewhat amused.

"That's the whole plan?" He asked and Ed nodded, no sign of anger at Mustang's slightly teasing tone. He realised it wasn't a great plan. "Is there a plan B?"

"Of course." Ed nodded. "We go through the Gate and pay Truth whatever it asks so we can get back home. I don't know about you, but I prefer to not lose another limb because of that formless bastard." Ed told him and Mustang sobered up a little at that.

"You're serious? Our whole plan is to steal more stones and use them to get home?" He asked. Once they'd gotten back to Amestris last time and told Al and Mustang's team the story, they'd agreed that they would never use a Philosopher's Stone again. Neither of them liked the fact that they'd sacrificed a massive amount of lives just to get back to their own world. Grief flashed momentarily in Ed's eyes before it was overtaken by anger.

"I know. Do you think I actually like this plan? I hate it! But I can't think of any other way that doesn't end up with us dead, like Al was or like me." Ed's voice broke a little at the end there. "The only way we get out of using a stone or seeing Truth is if Al manages to open, and keep open, a portal directly above us so we can climb back in. I know Al won't do that if it means paying too high of a price because we both promised each other on mum's grave that we wouldn't go through what we did on that night again." Mustang was slightly surprised at that bit of information. The two brothers were so well-known and one of the things that everyone knew was you didn't mess with one of them if you didn't want the wrath of the other to fall upon you. Mustang vividly recalled one such time where Ed had been kidnapped, knocked out and had his wrist and ribs broken and Al had found him. When Ed's kidnapper had returned to find Al kneeling next to his brother's prone form, he'd taken a shot at him only to have the bullet ricochet off the armour. Al had punched the man so hard that he'd flown backwards and burst through two wooden crates before coming to a stop. From what Mustang knew, the man was still recovering from his injuries even now, five years after the fact. He didn't think there was anyway they would both agree not to take any extreme measures to save the other.

"I'm sorry." That got Ed's attention, causing those golden eyes to snap back up to meet his. "I didn't mean to imply that you weren't as upset with this plan as I am." Ed's eyes narrowed suspiciously and Mustang wished he could be offended by that but he knew why Ed did that. It wouldn't be the first time he'd lied when he had apologised to the blonde. But Ed didn't find any sign of a lie so he just muttered to the other alchemist to not worry about it and returned to his coffee. Only once they were both finished did Mustang pointedly pick up the first aid kit, ignoring the eye roll from the blonde.

"Fine, you worry-wart." Ed sighed, pushing his chair out more so Mustang had the room to work as he pleased. Mustang just flicked him on the ear, causing the blonde to growl and rub the flicked appendage. Mustang ignored the growl and got to work. The gash on Ed's arm would need to be re-wrapped but it was the only injury that needed to covered again. A few cuts needed butterfly bandaids, including one on his face that looked like a simple poke would re-open it.

"So, wanna tell me how badly your ankle is hurting you?" Surprise and little 'busted' swept across Ed's face. Mustang did him the courtesy of not commenting on it, just applying bandaids where they were needed while he waited for Ed's reply.

"My ankle is only mildly sprained." He answered wearily. Mustang just nodded. "How did you know I hurt my leg anyway?" Ed asked, mildly curious. Mustang finished wrapping his left arm and was now moving on to his ankle, feeling the joint carefully. Ed hissed when he hit a tender spot and Mustang reached out for another bandage.

"You did well enough hiding the leg injury yesterday but you didn't do as good a job when you headed for the shower or came back out." Mustang told him and Ed silently cursed himself. The last thing he'd been thinking when he'd gone for a shower was hiding that injury. Mustang finished wrapping up his ankle but didn't hop up straight away.

"Answer me honestly, Edward. How are you feeling now?" Mustang asked imploringly, keeping his black eyes locked on to Edward's gold ones. Ed slumped in his seat slightly

"I'm fine. Bruised as all hell and I'm still tired but I'm fine. You know I've been up against people worse than Moore. These injuries? They're insignificant." Ed told him honestly and Roy wished, once again, that Ed didn't have so much to compare these injuries and call them 'insignificant'.

"Okay." Was all Mustang could say in response as he stood up properly and started clearing up the rubbish and remainder of the first aid kit. Edward took this as his opportunity to finish getting dressed and no sooner had they finished, there was a knock at the door. Mustang moved to answer it while Ed drew his absorbing array on his left hand again with the marker he stole off of McGee. JJ greeted them as she walked into the room and handed Ed a hairbrush.

"I figured you'd be as unprepared for dimension travel as you were last time." She smiled and Ed felt himself grin as he accepted it.

"Thanks, Miss JJ." He immediately started brushing his hair while JJ turned to face Mustang.

"I was also asked to let you know that we'd be leaving in 15 to get some breakfast as we head to the NCIS office." She informed them and Mustang nodded his thanks.

"We'll meet you down in the lobby in 15." He told her and she turned back to Ed.

"How are you this morning?" She asked, not forgetting that one of her favourite blondes was injured.

"Totally fine, thank you." He gave her a smile and went to hand her back the hairbrush but she shook her head.

"No, you keep it until you go home. I brought a spare one." She pushed his hand holding the brush back towards him.

"Oh, okay. Thank you." He said, tossing it lightly onto his bed and started braiding his hair as JJ left with a 'see you downstairs' thrown over her shoulder. Ten minutes after she left, the two of them headed out and met up with everyone from the BAU team in the lobby.

"How are you today, Edward?" Hotch asked and Ed really had to stop himself from sighing.

"All good." Ed told him and Hotch simply nodded once before looking at the rest of them.

"I haven't heard from Gibbs or his team so we're heading to the office. We'll grab some breakfast on the way." Hotch said and Ed had to really admire the way he got straight to the point unlike some Brigadier-Generals he could name. They piled into the two cars and grabbed breakfast at whatever fast food restaurant was pointed out first. Less than an hour after leaving the hotel they were pulling up in first spare car parks they could see. They took the elevator up to find half the NCIS team already there.

"Morning." Gibbs greeted from where they were gathered in front of one of the tv screens. "We've had a development. Agent Jaraeu's press conference worked. A woman on her way to work spotted Moore heading into an alleyway. Uniforms responded and followed him but they lost him in an area used by squatters and the homeless. I sent DiNozzo and Ziva to check it out, see if they can get us an exact location. Once they do, they'll call us." Ed stole a chair and sat down.

"Cool. Did the woman or the police say anything about him still being injured?" He asked as he spun slightly in the chair.

"The officers reported back that he seemed to have some sort of cast on so I think it's safe to assume he hasn't figured out the healing properties of alchemy." McGee answered. "I can't believe that that is a sentence I have actually had to say." Ed gave a huff of laughter but stopped when Mustang slapped him up the back of the head. Ed elbowed him in the gut for retribution which caused Mustang to grumble as he rubbed the newly sore spot. It wasn't Ed's fault Mustang was standing on his right.

"Did you have to hit me with your automail?" Mustang hissed at him.

"Yes. Yes I did." Ed told him straight-faced. Morgan, Reid and McGee snorted in laughter though McGee was quietened by a look from Gibbs.

"You're such a brat." Mustang muttered and Ed quirked a brow.

"And you're a bastard." Ed sniped back.

"Are you sure he's your subordinate, not the other way around?" Morgan stage whispered to Mustang and Ed snickered before giving Morgan a high-five. Hotch rolled his eyes before deciding to go back to the original subject before a fight broke out.

"What's the plan once they call in?" He asked Gibbs who looked at McGee who seemed to hear some sort of telepathic command to answer the question.

"If they call in saying they've found him, we're planning on tailing him so that we can choose where to apprehend him. We're hoping he'll try to find somewhere where he won't be spotted by anyone and we'll take him down there. If they call in saying they can't find him than we'll check in with Miss Garcia and see if she's had any luck with security cameras and we'll go from there." McGee told them and the BAU agents seemed happy with the plan.

"Where is Garcia?" Morgan asked. The quirky blonde hadn't been at the hotel that morning and no one was sure if she had even come to the hotel to catch some sleep.

"She's still down with the cyber unit. Said she had a few ideas on how to track Moore last night and didn't leave." McGee told him and Morgan sighed. That was his baby girl. Out of all of them, she and Reid were the ones who'd gotten closest to the blonde alchemist and he knew how Garcia was when it came to people threatening her friends and Edward was certainly one her friends, whether he wanted to be or not.

"Mind if I go check on her?" Gibbs shrugged.

"McGee, take him down to the cyber unit. See how they're going and get back up here." McGee nodded and gestured for Morgan to follow him. Ed jumped up and joined them before they got to far. Morgan raised a brow at him.

"I wanna see." Ed said, eyes lighting up in excitement at the prospect of seeing more of this worlds technology. Morgan chuckled.

"You're acting like a kid on Christmas." He told him when Ed shot him a questioning glare.

"The fuck's Christmas?" He asked, face screwing up in confusion. Both Morgan and McGee looked at him, slightly horrified.

"You don't have Christmas?" McGee asked sounding a little sad for some reason. Ed shook his head. "Christmas is on the 25th December. It's a day that used to be a solely religious holiday but it's transformed into a day for celebrating family and people important to you, however there are plenty of people who still celebrate it as a religious holiday. Generally, families get together, exchange gifts, spend the day together and eat food. There's a bit more to it than that but that's basically the day stripped down to it's bare basics." He explained and Ed had to admit it sounded like a nice holiday. There was a sudden surge of alchemic energy nearby so similar in strength to the one that preceded the portals Moore and Mustang fell through that it caused Ed to stop short with a gasp.

"What's wrong?" Morgan asked, hand automatically moving to his weapon. McGee had also had a similar reaction before he realised that his weapon was in his desk like it always was when he wasn't in the field. The alchemic surge disappeared after a split second of Ed sensing it and he knew it wasn't long enough to have been another portal but it was the amount of energy he felt that had him on edge.

"There was a huge surge of alchemic energy just now." Ed said, looking in the direction he sensed the energy with confusion. McGee and Morgan exchanged a look before looking back at the blonde.

"Should we be worried?" McGee asked uncertainly, eyes shifting between Ed and Morgan. Morgan shrugged unhelpfully.

"No, I don't think so." Ed said, still staring in same direction before facing the two agents. "Let's go." He said, still feeling a little uneasy about the energy but he also knew he couldn't do anything right now. Morgan and McGee hesitated for a millisecond before McGee started leading them again. No one really spoke for the rest of the way; Ed was busy trying to figure out what the energy meant and neither agent knew what to say. They finally made it to the cyber unit with no other alchemic surges to stop them. It wasn't hard to find Garcia amongst everyone. She was the most colourfully dressed person there and she'd taken it upon herself to decorate the work space she'd been given with funky figurines and quirky objects.

"Hey, baby girl. How you doing?" Morgan greeted cheekily as he approached her. She spun on her chair and flashed him a brilliant grin.

"Sweet cheeks! Did you come all this way just to check on little old me?" She asked, hand over chest.

"You know it." Morgan winked. "Gotta make sure they're treating my favourite computer genius as the goddess that she is." Garcia gave a gasp that was  _just_  this side of dramatic at that.

"Be still my beating heart." She said, fanning herself with her hands. They held the facade for a moment before they both laughed, laughing a little harder when they caught sight of McGee's confused face. Then Garcia's eyes landed on Ed. "Ed! Are you okay? How are you feeling this morning?" She asked as she made her way over to him and grabbing his face carefully between her hands to check his visible injuries, concern evident on her face.

"I'm okay, Miss Penelope, I swear." The blonde assured her as her eyes scanned and noted every injury she could see before she pulled him into a gentle yet firm hug that took Ed completely by surprise. "Um..." Was all he good say in response before he cautiously wrapped his own arms around her. He wasn't used to getting hugs from anyone other than Al, Winry or a drunk Havoc.

"What's this?! Is he your new favourite now?" Morgan sounded jealous but the twitch at the corner of his mouth suggested he was far more amused by Ed's awkwardness than anything. Garcia let Ed go and faced Morgan.

"Yes. You've been replaced, my love." Garcia petted his shoulder consolingly as she walked back to her mini control centre. Morgan gave an exaggerated gasp of betrayal while Ed cackled now that he'd recovered from the unexpected hug.

"Deal with it." Ed smirked when Morgan turned a mock-angry glare on him. Morgan's response was to grin before he wrapped an arm around Ed's shoulders to drag him closer to Garcia and McGee. Ed grumbled his protests but Morgan intentionally ignored them.

"So what has our lovely tech princess unearthed for us?" Morgan asked as he leaned on Garcia's desk, dragging Ed with him since he still had one muscular arm around his shoulders. McGee looked over her other shoulder.

"Aw, you keep flattering me like that and you might just find yourself back as my number one." Garcia told him sweetly before moving on to answer the subject. "I spent the night programming. I now have a program that once it spots someone with a 85% match to whoever's face I plug into it, it'll try to predict which camera that person will turn up on next rather than forcing me or someone else to do it manually. I've also written a program that sorts through every police report from every precinct in this city that searches specifically for 'red or blue crackling energy' or 'red or blue magic', things along those lines, which then gets seen by me and I decide if it's someone who's not, you know, cuckoo." She told them and Ed was not the only one who was impressed.

"You wrote two brand new computer programs in one night?" McGee asked, a little in awe. She nodded her head enthusiastically, causing her styled hair to bounce slightly.

"You're amazing, Miss Penelope." Ed told her, voice completely serious.

"Aw, Ed, this is why you're my favourite." She told him, petting one of his cheeks fondly, an action that caused Morgan to chuckle slightly at them. Ed was grinning alongside them and, at his request, was listening to Garcia explain how she made the programs and more generalised questions about things he didn't understand when he felt a second surge of alchemic energy. This time he'd been prepared for it since the first one earlier and in no time he'd clapped his hands and sent forth a wave of his tracking array. His sudden turn had been enough to throw Morgan off of his shoulders and the crackle of energy had startled the three of them enough that they all flinched back slightly.

* * *

 

Ed kept his hands stretched out in front of him for a moment before dropping them to his sides but his array didn't let up. His eyes, now glowing electric blue, narrowed slightly before he turned his head slightly. Nobody moved for a solid two minutes. They barely even breathed. Then, just as suddenly as he reacted, Ed stopped his array. The blow glue disappeared from his eyes and his knees started to tremble, threatening to give way underneath him, but Morgan was there barely a second later, catching him under his right elbow and supporting him as Ed tried to steady himself. After a moment to catch his breath, Ed remembered his absorbing array and activated it, ignoring the warm trickle he could feel running over his mouth and down his chin. He couldn't believe how much that array had taken out of him. He was almost too busy trying to regain his breath to overhear the conversation going on around him.

"Is he okay?" McGee's voice and face swam around Ed. "Do I need to go and get his boss?" Ed wanted to voice a protest but he couldn't even open his mouth and his breathing wasn't steadying as it should have been. That didn't bode well. Obviously, his energy had still been too depleted from yesterday for him to have used the tracking array for as long as he had. He heard Garcia tell McGee to go and get Mustang while Morgan led him to a chair and sat him down before he pocked up the edge of his red coat and pressing it to his nose. Only then did Ed realise that the warm trickle was a nose bleed. He'd pushed the array too far, not for the first time, but at least he wasn't unconscious from it. Again.

Garcia had produced a bottle of water and a cloth from somewhere and had wet it, handing it to Ed once his nose bleed had stopped so he could clean himself up. He obviously wasn't doing a good enough job because Garcia took the cloth back after a couple of seconds and started cleaning the blood away herself. His absorbing array was working but not fast enough and now he had a massive headache that was threatening to turn into a migraine. At least his breathing was back under control. He really, really hated this dimension's lack of alchemy energy.

"Ed?" Garcia asked once she was done. "What happened? Are you okay?" She handed him the water bottle at his gesture and he gulped down half of what remained before he answered.

"Yeah, I'm good." He eventually said but a scoff from next to him told him at least of them didn't believe him. He would've rolled his eyes but that was too much effort. "Fine. I have a pretty bad headache." He admitted and heard Garcia tsk at him before she moved away only to come back half a minute later, pressing two white tablets into his hand. "What's this?" He asked, lifting his head up to look at her.

"Painkillers. Strong painkillers." She told him. He looked back at them for a second before shrugging and tossing them back before chugging the last of the water.

"Cheers." He said, gratefully. Now that he had rested for a few minutes, his body was telling him that not only did his head hurt but he was starving and more exhausted than he'd been before he got some sleep.

"So what was that?" Morgan asked. "Was there another surge?"

"Yup." Ed sighed leaning back in the chair a bit. "When I felt the first one on our way down here, I kept my tracking array ready so that as soon as I felt a second one I could use it immediately." He told them, already feeling his headache receding. He was gonna have to thank Garcia later for them.

"So what happened to you then? I've never seen you this bad after performing an array." Morgan said and Ed let out a breathy chuckle.

"Yeah, no this isn't the first time this has happened with this particular array. It's just the first time I've made this mistake here." He told them. "I just pushed the array too far beyond my energy levels. I've done this in Amestris before though I pushed my limits even further and ended up unconscious. Al ripped me a new one for that when I woke up." He chuckled a little sheepishly. He suddenly realised there was someone missing. "Where's McGee?" He asked, vaguely remembering him talking just after he stopped the tracking array but his brain was pretty fuzzy still.

"He went to get Mustang." Ed sighed when Morgan finished speaking. Al may have yelled at him for nearly an hour when he'd collapsed but Mustang hadn't kept his opinion quiet either and he honestly didn't know which was worse.

"Yay." He said dryly. Garcia pet his head sympathetically. They didn't have to wait long for Mustang and every single other member of the BAU and NCIS team were suddenly in the cyber unit room with them. Mustang was kneeling in front of Ed before he had time to blink.

"What happened? Agent McGee said you nearly collapsed from using alchemy." He said as he took in Ed's appearance. He looked way worse than he'd done yesterday.

"Did you feel them? The surges?" Ed asked, not commenting on Mustang being so close. He'd never say it out loud but he felt a lot better with Mustang right there. It was the next best thing to having Alphonse with him. Mustang nodded his head. "I felt the first one but it was gone too quickly for me to react to it so I kept myself prepared in case there was a second one, which there was. I sent out my tracking array to see if I could see what was causing it and I kinda overextended myself." Mustang sighed in almost fond exasperation.

"Of course you did." He said. "Was it worth it, at least? Did you learn anything?" He asked, curious now that his worry was slightly less.

"Yeah. It was like someone was trying to open another portal but they didn't have enough power to open it fully and maintain it long enough for someone to come through. I couldn't use my alchemy to find out who was trying but I know they weren't using a stone to do because if they were, the portal would've just opened. Whoever was trying to open that portal has to have really strong alchemy to have managed to open it as much as they did twice." Mustang could see where he was going with this.

"You think it's Alphonse trying to open the portal, don't you?" Mustang asked and he could hear a couple of gasps from behind him.

"I think it's Alphonse. I think he's trying to find a way to open the portal so he can bring us home." Ed said, golden eyes softening at the thought.

"Can he do it?" Rossi asked and Ed's eyes snapped to him.

"I don't know." The blonde admitted. "He'd need a stone or Truth's help to do so. Unless..." Ed trailed off, deep in thought.

"Unless what?" Gibbs asked after it was clear Ed wasn't going to continue unprompted.

"Unless Al teamed up with more alchemists and they combined their powers." Ed told them. "If he found alchemists we trust not to reveal this dimension, if he can explain the array to them, it could work. Hell, he might only need Teacher to help him. Maybe Armstrong as well." Ed said, speaking more to Mustang.

"If Alphonse can do that..." Mustang said and Ed grinned.

"We'd have a way home without resorting to the stones." Ed finished the flame alchemist's thought.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Edward and Mustang find themselves back in another dimension but this time they're in a new city with new people and facing another rogue alchemist, only this one is out for their blood. With Truth not being involved, they must figure out how to take down the alchemist and get home. New friends and old come together to help them but will it be enough?

The elation Ed felt at the thought that his brother might be able to offer them a solution to the 'do we sacrifice hundreds of lives or do we pay the unknown and possibly devastating price Truth demands to get home?' problem they had dulled when he realised there was a slight issue. Mustang noticed the minute changes in his expression and felt his brows furrow in response.

"What's wrong?" He asked. Al trying to find a way to get them home was a good thing. He couldn't figure out why Ed wouldn't be completely happy about it.

"We need to figure out a way to communicate with Al." He told him. "We can't leave here without dealing with Moore and we can't just leave it up to these guys to deal with; not while he has those stones. And we can't risk Al and anyone who helps him by depending on them continuously opening portals until we're ready to leave. We need to talk to him and coordinate a time for him to open the portal. To give him a time though, we'd need to know where Moore is and figure out a plan to get him." Mustang sighed. Of course, Ed was right there. The fact that they had this option that was perfect but now seemed unattainable was disappointing. He looked away for few moments, trying to think a way around this new problem when he glanced back at Edward and took in his beyond haggard appearance. The problem surrounding the portal could wait until Ed had at least eaten and slept for a bit. He didn't want to face Alphonse once they got home and he found out he'd pushed Ed in this condition.

"Come on." Mustang said as he stood and grasped Ed by his flesh upper arm into a standing position. "Do you need food or sleep most right now?" Ed blinked up at him blearily. He felt slightly better now thanks to the painkillers and the absorbing array, which had around another five minutes until it finished, but only slightly better. It only took him a couple of seconds to actually assess his current needs, food and sleep, and figure out which one he needed right now.

"Sleep." He muttered, acutely aware there were a lot of people in the room with him. He seriously hated appearing weak in front of people and if he wasn't quite as exhausted as he was, he'd have resorted to his usual defensive behaviour to make himself appear less vulnerable than he perceived himself to be.

"Let's get you back to the hotel than." Mustang said. Ed nodded, missing the way Mustang had given Gibbs and Hitch his equivalent of a 'fight me' expression.

"Okay." Gibbs said after a few moments before leading the way out of the room. Garcia stopped them for a moment to give Ed a hug before she got back to work. "DiNozzo called before McGee came to get the Brigadier-General," Mustang wasn't the only one to frown at the lack of usual reaction from the blonde, proof of how much that array had taken out of him, "and no one had seen Moore after the officers lost him. Miss Garcia is going to start trying to track him from the cameras. Until she gets something or we get a report of him being spotted, we can't do much." Gibbs sounded rather frustrated at the lack of action.

"JJ, Reid, go with Mustang and Ed. You two can coordinate with the rest of us from the hotel." Hotch said once they'd reached the elevators and the two agents nodded.

"McGee, go with them. I'll send Ziva to meet you there." Gibbs ordered and McGee nodded, heading for his desk to grab his weapon and ID before rejoining the rest of them at the elevators. "We'll call with any updates." Gibbs said before the elevator doors opened and the five of them entered, Ed still being supported by Mustang.

The elevator opened up and they made their way to the cars. McGee produced a set of keys from nowhere before taking one of the numerous, identical sedans, claiming he'd need it to get back once Agent David joined them. After all, the FBI's SUV only seats five and there would be six of them. JJ hopped behind the wheel while Mustang helped Ed into the back seat. Reid got shotgun and Mustang didn't bother arguing; he just clambered in next to his subordinate. The drive to the hotel was quiet and it was only due to his weird ability to not fall asleep in cars that meant Ed was still awake when they pulled up. He heard the four adults exchange words before he was being led back into his room only a couple of hours after he'd left it. He stripped down to his boxers and tank top before climbing back into his bed, ready to get some much needed sleep. With how tired he was, he would be surprised if he woke up before dark.

"Ed?" Mustang's voice stopped him just on the edge of sleep and he grunted in answer. "Don't do that to yourself again." Mustang said and Ed forced one golden eye to open and look at his commanding officer. He felt a pang of guilt for the heavy look of concern on his face but he couldn't help the flare of warmth he felt at seeing someone so worried about him personally.

"'m sorry." Ed mumbled into his pillow. He wanted to sleep but he also knew he needed to tell Mustang about a possible solution to their communication issue that he'd come up with during the car ride. He heaved himself into a sitting position to try and dissuade sleep for a moment. Mustang looked confused and he was frozen in a position with his arms out in case Ed collapsed. "You need to go back to the NCIS headquarters and wait in the car park for the next surge. Use the dagger Moore made and attach a note for Al. Throw it into the portal. Tell Al to knock off trying to open a portal until the time specified on the note. If he tries again, we know he didn't get it and we'll have to figure something else out." Mustang looked conflicted.

"You'll be okay here by yourself?" He eventually asked and Ed huffed in amusement, that warm feeling back in his chest.

"I'll be sleeping and I'll have two babysitters, right?" Ed asked and Mustang nodded. "I'll be fine." Ed said as he let himself lay back down, snuggling deeper into his covers. He heard Mustang kept up and take a few steps to the table where the dagger was.

"I'll be back in a few hours." Mustang said, startling Ed slightly. The blonde hadn't expected the man to speak again. "Try not to destroy the building in your sleep, brat." Ed managed to drag up the energy to raise his hand and flip him off.

"I'll do my best, Colonel bastard." He drawled back, falling back on his old military title, not even opening his eyes as he heard the soft huff of amusement. Ed barely heard the door click shut behind Mustang before he lost himself to an exhausted sleep.

* * *

 

Mustang hesitated outside of his hotel room's door. He loathed the idea of leaving Ed here by himself even though he knew there'd be two highly-trained federal agents here to make sure he was alright and that, even exhausted, Ed could still put up one hell of a good fight. Shaking his head at his irrational concern, he knocked on the door directly opposite his and was greeted by JJ only a few moments later.

"What's up?" She asked, naturally confused about him not being with Ed. Despite how they interacted, the entire BAU unit hadn't bought the act since they saw how Mustang had reacted back when Ed had tested his tracking array before they found Harding.

"I need someone to drive me back to NCIS. Fullmetal came up with an idea to try and communicate with his brother and since I'm the only other alchemist you've got, it's up to me to try and get a note to Al." Mustang explained to her, slipping back into his usual habit of calling Ed by his State Alchemist title when not talking to him alone, and JJ looked at him, a little slack-jawed.

"He came up with an idea to communicate with his brother through an unreliable portal in his condition?" She asked and Mustang nodded.

"Yes. Like I said, not much can stand between the Elric brothers. If Fullmetal wants to contact his brother, you can bet he will find a way." Mustang informed her.

"Hopefully he can." She said before remembering Mustang had a reason for being in front of her door. "Let me go let Reid and Agent McGee know the situation. They can stay here with Ed and I'll drive you to NCIS." She said before slipping past him to the room the boys were in. She was gone longer than expected and came back with Reid following her. Mustang quirked a brow at this. "Agent McGee got a call from Agent David. She's literally around the corner so Reid is coming with us since you are technically supposed to be escorted by two agents."

"Okay. Shall we go?" He asked, gesturing for them to take the lead and soon enough they were in the lobby just as Agent David entered it.

"Gibbs briefed me on the situation. Is Edward alright?" Mustang was internally amused. He'd love to know the blondes reaction to knowing how concerned everyone was about him, even those who had only known him a day.

"Fullmetal is fine. He's asleep and will stay that way for quite some time." Mustang answered her. "Have there been any new developments?" She looked at him for a moment, an indecipherable expression on her face before it went carefully neutral.

"Nothing that will help point us to Moore's location. We do believe he is now working with at least two people. Multiple witnesses said they saw Moore talking with two homeless looking men before leaving with them. No one seems to know these men or where the three of them went but they were able to provide a sketch of the men. Your technical annalist is trying to find footage that has the two other men on it to see if they match the sketches and if we can find out who they are." She said, looking at JJ and Reid.

"I'm sure she will. There's not many people who can disappear so effectively that even Garcia can't find them." JJ said, her lips curling into a fond smile. "Oh, before I forget, Agent McGee is in room 217 and Edward is sleeping in room 219." Mustang inwardly cringed with a touch of guilt. He would've accidentally neglected to tell the NCIS agent where her teammate and her charge were located.

"Thank you, Agent Jaraeu." JJ waved her thanks away.

"Just 'JJ' is fine." She said with a smile that the other woman returned.

"JJ, than." Her eyes flicked towards Mustang again. "Is there anything else I should know?" She asked.

"In the unlikely event Fullmetal awakes before we are back, would you be willing to buy him some food? He'll be starving after using that much alchemic energy and he is very vocal when he's hungry." Mustang warned her and saw her eyes twinkle with slight amusement.

"He sounds like someone I know. I'm sure we can arrange something." She told him, slightly warmer than she had been a few minutes ago and Mustang was a tad confused as to what he'd done to earn her aloofness to begin with but he decided that that was a mystery left to solve at a later date.

"Thank you." he said, dipping his head slightly before the three agents exchanged goodbyes and he was walking out of the hotel, escorted by the two BAU agents. The drive back was as uneventful as every other drive to and from the NCIS building had been, though the lack of the blonde alchemist was noticeable. JJ had phoned Hotch while they were driving and Mustang had to marvel at this worlds technology. The best they could do in Amestris was radios and the other person had to be within a certain radius to receive the transmission. They pulled into the familiar check point and, once cleared, they found a car space close to where Edward and Mustang had appeared. By unspoken agreement, the three climbed out of the car and proceeded to linger. There was no point in Mustang going inside if a portal tried to open as he wouldn't have the time to come back out and proceed with Edward's plan if he did.

"Miss Jareau, Doctor Reid, do either of you have paper and a pen I could use?" Mustang asked. Both agents dug around in the car for a minute before producing a notepad and pen. "Thank you." He nodded as he took both items from them and started writing. Once finished, he fished out a rubber band he'd found stashed in one of his pockets (where it had come from, he didn't know) and secured the note around the dagger. Now all they had to do was wait.

And wait, they did. For over three hours, they stood in the car park and waited for the next attempt to open the portal. They spoke about a lot of things. Mustang told them about some of Edwards missions and they told him about some of their more infamous cases. Reid was in the middle of telling them about a case where a man claiming to be a professor had sought Rossi and Reid out to admit to killing woman and that if they didn't hurry, five more people would be killed. Reid was up to the part where he'd figured out how to find them when Mustang felt another surge and moved lightening fast so he directly under it. Using a move Maes had taught him, Mustang launched the dagger and the note straight up and the three of them watched as it flew nearly six metres up before it simply vanished. The surge ended a moment after the dagger had disappeared and Mustang held his breath but nothing else happened.

"Now we just have to hope Alphonse and the others got it." Mustang said, still looking up at where the dagger vanished. He hoped this plan had worked.

**In Amestris**

Alphonse had stared blankly at the array that his brother and now Mustang and Moore had disappeared through for nearly two minutes before snapping out of it. The first thing he needed to do was tell Miss Riza so she could do what she needed to do about Mustang's disappearance. He'd apologised after he'd told her what had happened. He'd realised shortly after Moore had gotten himself loose that he must've had more Philosopher's Stones on him and he had been the one to forget to check. Hawkeye had placed a hand on his shoulder and lightly squeezed until he'd locked eyes with her before she told him that this wasn't his fault and he should place all of his energy trying to see if he could get them back instead of wasting some on self-blame. He'd taken her words to heart.

After studying the array for nearly three hours, he'd come to the conclusion that he'd be no where near strong enough to activate it alone or without a Philosopher's Stone. This array was just as demanding as the human transmutation one and he'd only been able to activate that one with his brother's help. He needed help from someone just as strong, if not stronger, than his brother. With that thought in his head, he found the nearest phone and called Teacher. He explained the situation to her and, after lecturing him for ten minutes, she and Sig agreed to catch the next train. He heard Sig's deep voice telling his wife the next train left in ten minutes. Teacher hadn't even said 'goodbye' before hanging up the phone but Al didn't mind. He was just grateful Teacher would be here to help soon.

While he was waiting for Teacher's train to arrive, he kept studying the array. He didn't bother with sleep and he only ate when someone brought him food. He always had at least two of Mustang's team with him and while they couldn't help with the array, he was admittedly grateful for their company. Havoc had kept him entertained and his mind off of worrying as he tried to guess what sort of shit Ed was getting himself into and the Brigadier-General's reaction to it. When Havoc had jokingly said something about Edward breaking his automail arm off and hitting Mustang with it, Al realised he hadn't called Winry. He hesitated in doing so but ultimately he did as soon as he realised that the only reason Ed had come back with his automail intact last time was because Truth protected it. That wasn't something Ed could rely on this time.

Winry had been just as irate as Teacher had been but at least her lecture hadn't lasted as long as Teacher's had. She had wanted to come out straight away but Al had convinced her to wait until they'd gotten them back. She'd protested that if he was badly hurt, she needed to be there to fix his automail and Alphonse had argued back that if he was badly hurt, he'd be going straight to a hospital and she would still have to wait until the doctors had cleared her to work on his automail. She had continued arguing until he pointed that they didn't know if Ed would need his automail replaced or just fixed and it would be easier if she stayed in Rush Valley until they knew what he needed. She'd relented only once Alphonse had promised to call her every few hours even if there was nothing new to tell her and immediately after something did happen. She threatened bodily harm to him if he didn't call the second he could once they got both Mustang and Ed home. He promised immediately, the threat of a wrench to the head making him suitably afraid of incurring the blonde mechanics wrath.

Hawkeye had come to him after his phone call with Winry for an update on everything. He'd told her about Teacher coming out to help and that Winry would stay in Rush Valley for now. He'd explained the array to her as best as he could but everything he'd learned from studying it wouldn't help help them get the two missing alchemists. She seemed disappointed but had been quick to tell that she wasn't disappointed in him in any way. He'd be lying if he said he hadn't felt relieved at that. He asked how she was handling everything in Mustang's absence. She told him that the Brigadier-General and herself had come up with a plan just in case this sort of thing happened again. She'd implemented it and as far as the big brass were concerned, Mustang and Edward had taken off on a highly-classified mission that absolutely no one apart from Fuhrer Grumman knew about. Grumman was the only person outside of Mustangs team and the Elrics' family that knew what actually happened three months ago and was more than willing to go along with this plan.

Once she had heard everything Al had to tell her, she ordered him back to Gracia's house to get some sleep. He tried to argue with her but she refused to listen to him. Instead, she pointedly asked how he expected to help his teacher open the portal if he wasn't at full strength. He didn't have a good answer and admitted defeat. She left Breda and Falman in the warehouse to guard the array and escorted Alphonse to Gracia's home herself. Gracia had been briefed that Edward and Mustang had disappeared but that's all she'd been told. Elysia had been given the story about the highly-classified mission. Both girls had met them at the front door and Gracia had ordered Al to the kitchen to eat the sandwich she had made him. Elysia was on watchdog duty and followed him on her mother's orders. Hawkeye and Gracia had spoken for a couple of minutes before the Captain left and Gracia joined them in the kitchen. She had to smile fondly at the sight that greeted her. Al was dutifully eating the sandwich but Elysia had interpreted her own orders to mean that she had to literally stare Alphonse down. Gracia hadn't seen her even blink in the time she'd been standing in the doorway.

Alphonse had to admit that the sandwich was definitely appreciated after all. He had giggled at Elysia's one-sided staring contest with him and he saw Gracia approach out of the corner of his eye just as he took the last few bites of his food. Once she saw he was done, Gracia ordered him into the shower and then bed. He didn't bother putting up an argument. Teacher's train wouldn't be in until late tonight so they couldn't do anything until morning. He could admit that now that he'd been forced to take a break away from the array. Half an hour later found him in his and Ed's room, lying on his side and staring blankly at the empty bed on the opposite side of the room before he drifted off to a dreamless sleep.

* * *

 

Alphonse woke the next morning to Elysia jumping on his bed, chattering excitedly about him having people here to visit him. He tackled her onto the bed so he could get up causing her to giggle as she bounced lightly on the bed. She still beat him to the door and dragged him as determinedly as she could by his hand. He was greeted by the sight of Teacher, Sig and Gracia sitting around the kitchen table, sipping on some coffee. A glance at the clock told him it was nearly 7:15 which surprised him slightly. He was sure Izumi and Sig would've been here a lot earlier. Gracia interrupted that thought by pushing a fresh cup of coffee into his hands and he took a few fortifying sips. There wasn't much chatter in the kitchen and once he was done with his coffee, Izumi and Sig both stood up and bade Gracia goodbye, thanking her for the coffee. Al followed them , assuring Gracia he'd check in with her later on and telling Elysia to be good at school.

Fuery was waiting for them outside with a car and greeted them as they climbed in. Al asked for any updates but there weren't any. He hadn't really expected there to be any but he could still dream. He made small talk with Teacher and Sig about how everything was going in Dublith and with their shop. He asked Izumi about her health and she was surprisingly forthcoming. Hohenheim had healed her completely, it seemed. She was completely healthy once again, something Sig was very happy about. It didn't take them long to reach the warehouse with the array. Izumi greeted Hawkeye and the other team members but ignored them afterwards in favour of looking over the array for herself. She spent a good half hour looking over the array before rejoining them.

"Alright. Let's try getting my other idiot pupil back." She said. Al went to move next to the array but Izumi stopped him. "No, I'll try and open it myself first. They might need someone to help them back through the portal. We don't know anything about where the portal opens up, after all."

"Okay, Teacher." Al nodded and moved to stand next to her while she took up a kneeling position next to the array.

"Is everyone clear?" She asked and received confirmations back that they were. She cracked her knuckles and rolled her shoulders before holding her hands just above the array. "You ready?" She asked Al, eyeing him with a side glance.

"Yes, Teacher." He said, possible arrays he'd need already floating in his mind ready for him to call on them. She nodded, closed her eyes, drew in a deep breath and pressed her hands on the array's outer circle. The whole array lit up blue and, for a moment, Al thought she'd be able to do it but then she let out a pained gasp and Sig was immediately there at her side, helping her stand. Al watched as she assured Sig she was alright and waited until her breathing was less laboured before asking her the question everyone wanted answered. "What happened? Are you alright?"

"I'm fine. The array was too strong. I let it go before it could rebound on me." Izumi explained through gritted teeth. Al swore under his breath. Izumi worked for another minute to get her breathing under control. "Okay. Let me rest for half an hour then we'll try again. Alphonse, this time you'll help me open the portal. Is there any State Alchemists you can trust with this?" She gestured to the array.

"Armstrong?" Al offered, looking to Mustang's team. Hawkeye nodded slowly as she thought it over.

"He has proven himself very loyal to the Brigadier-General. He did keep your secret when you asked him too." She pointed out and Al nodded at her points. "He is in Central right now. He should be able to help." She eventually said.

"Someone needs to get him. He needs to be on hand for our next attempt." Izumi said and Al almost flinched at her tone. She was not very happy. Hawkeye nodded to Havoc and he disappeared out the door. Sig helped Izumi over to a wall and sat down with her, rubbing her back, the two of them murmuring quietly to one another. Al stood to the side with Hawkeye and the others. Havoc returned in under 15 minutes with the hulking figure of Armstrong striding behind him.

"Good morning, everyone!" He boomed, causing Al to twitch slightly. He had forgotten how loud the Major was. "I hear young Edward and Brigadier-General Mustang have run into some trouble. How may I assist you in your endeavours to get them back?" His eyes swept the room, landing on Alphonse then the Curtis'. "Young Alphonse! It warms my heart to see you out and about after your hospitalisation! I was thrilled to hear you had been cleared to rejoin your brother on missions!" He made to sweep Al up into a bone-crushing hug but Al managed to evade him.

"Thank you, Major Armstrong." He smiled a little nervously. He wasn't sure if the Major would try for a second hug. Thankfully, he didn't as he and Sig were now in some sort of muscle flexing show down. After a few confusing moments, they nodded to each other impressed and shook hands. Izumi was watching Sig with a fond look that always startled Al every time he saw it. She soon realised she was surrounded by people and lessened the fondness of the look before turning to Armstrong.

"Thank for coming here, Major Armstrong." She said, barely sounding stiff about thanking someone.

"Not a problem, Mrs Curtis, I assure you!" Armstrong assured her loudly. Teacher didn't look impressed with the noise level.

"What we tell you here and what you help us with must remain a secret from everyone except those present. Can you do that?" She asked sternly and Armstrong immediately turned completely serious.

"I swear on my family's line that nothing that happens in this room will be repeated to anyone outside of those here." He said solemnly and Izumi nodded.

"Three months ago, Truth sent Edward and his idiot commanding officer through to another dimension to hunt down a rogue alchemist who had discovered false Philosopher's Stones and were using them to murder the inhabitants of the other dimension. Truth brought them back once they had completed their task." Izumi explained and everyone could see the pieces coming together in Armstrong's head.

"Would I be correct in assuming this rogue was Thomas Harding?" He queried. Izumi looked to Alphonse, who nodded.

"Yes. Now, the boys were assigned to find and apprehend a burglar by the name of Moore two days ago. Yesterday they found and pursued him when he didn't surrender. This is where they cornered him." Izumi's arm made a sweeping motion and Armstrong's eye was immediately drawn to the array. "The boys fell for a trap. Moore, despite having no alchemy training, was an alchemist. He had just enough energy inside of him to perform the weakest of transmutations. He was also armed with a Philosopher's Stone, like Harding. Moore blamed Edward and Mustang for the death of his adoptive brother, Harding. So he'd set a trap and the boys fell into it. From what Alphonse told me, Edward managed to get him out of it but didn't have enough time to save himself. Alphonse secured Moore and called Mustang in but Moore got loose and both he and Mustang were in the array when he activated it again. This array opens a portal to the dimension Ed and Mustang were sent to three months ago." Armstrong had remained silent, listening intently to every word she said.

"What do you require from me?" He asked immediately and Alphonse felt a surge of fondness for the older alchemist. This was one of the reasons the boys and Mustang trusted him so much. Armstrong was willing to help any of his friends at the drop of a hat and the boys were certainly his friends.

"I tried activating the array myself but my strength alone isn't enough. This time, Alphonse and I are going to try together. If we are successful and Edward and Mustang are there, we may require your help in assisting them back through the portal." Izumi told him and he nodded.

"I'll be happy to help you. When do you want to attempt this again?" He asked and Al saw Izumi's eyes glint with approval. Al saw this as a very good sign. Despite helping them Father and fighting alongside the Armstrong siblings personally, she still didn't trust the military or those who worked for it, with the only exception ever being Edward. The fact that she approved of Armstrong was good.

"We're ready to try again now." Izumi said and Armstrong nodded. Izumi took up her position again and Al walked a few steps away before kneeling. Armstrong stood on his left. "Everyone clear?" She asked and once again received nothing but confirmations. "On three, Alphonse. One. Two. Three!" They placed their hands down simultaneously on the array and activated it. The blue energy crackled around the array and lit it up. They saw the energy swirl in the middle of the array, trying to clear itself so they could see through it. Armstrong stood at the ready and Al could tell that no one was breathing. Sweat started to drip down Al's face and he knew that Teacher was feeling the strain just as much. They held it for nearly thirty seconds, pouring their energy into it when Izumi suddenly shouted. "Alphonse! Stop!" He immediately cut his connection with a pained cry and only Armstrong stopped him from collapsing onto his side. A glance told him that Izumi was in the same position, with Sig there supporting her. Concerned wine-red eyes and a blurred face filled his vision.

"Alphonse? Are you alright?" Hawkeye asked, concern bleeding into her voice. Al blinked a few times and her face came into focus. He started to regulate his breathing like Teacher had taught him and was soon able to answer her.

"Yeah. Just drained. Also, really hungry." He said with a small grin. Hawkeye looked relieved.

"I'm glad to hear it. Rest for a few more minutes and we'll see if we can find you something eat." She said, placing a light hand on the shoulder Armstrong wasn't currently gripping. He nodded and she moved over to Izumi to presumably ask her the same thing.

"Thanks for the assist, Major." Al said, patting his hand lightly. Armstrong got the message and removed his hand.

"Anytime, young Alphonse! I am pleased that you are alright." He flashed Al a blinding smile that the young alchemist weakly returned. At least he didn't try to hug him. Hawkeye let them rest for ten minutes before suggesting they head for a nearby coffee shop. There weren't any arguments. Havoc and Fuery stayed behind with the array this time.

* * *

 

Hawkeye drove them to the cafe and they all piled around a table and perused the menu. A waiter came over and they placed their orders. He raised a brow slightly at the amount of food Al and Izumi had ordered but was soon trembling slightly under the gazes of both Izumi and Hawkeye. He moved away from their table the second he could and as fast as he could without actually running. Al sniggered into his water.

They waited for their food to come, passing time with small talk. Armstrong was very interested in learning what Izumi and Sig had been up to since the battle and asking about his and Edward's time as Teacher's students. Izumi indulged some of his questions but he ended up mainly conversing with Sig when the food arrived. Both Al and Izumi were fair too invested in their food to do anything like talk. Once they had finished their food and following coffees, they left to go settle the bill. Al was surprised to see that they'd spent nearly three hours at the cafe. He felt a lot better now and said so when Hawkeye asked.

They all piled back into the car and headed back for the warehouse. Al didn't pay much attention to what the adults were saying. He hoped Edward was okay. He needed to talk to Teacher about something he thought he'd felt in the array before they were forced to stop. He watched the buildings pass by in a blur before they slowed down in front of a now too familiar building. Al sighed. He was starting to get sick of being in this warehouse. They got to the second level of the warehouse when Al lightly grabbed Izumi by the arm and she must've read the question for privacy on his face because she didn't beat him up. She just nodded to Sig and glared at everyone else until they got the hint and kept going.

"What is it?" She asked, moving her arm out of his grip and glaring at him.

"Did you feel something in that array?" He asked a little nervously. Teacher wasn't fond of stupid or pointless questions and she wasn't afraid to show it with her fists. "I could have sworn I felt..." He trailed off, not wanting to voice it for some stupid reason. Izumi's eyes softened a little.

"Yes, I could feel Edward's alchemy through the array." Al's eyes snapped back up to her and she forced herself to lose the soft look. "What we sensed was his alchemy. He must've sensed my first attempt and used his tracking array to figure out what was going on the second time. That means he was close enough to the portal to sense the alchemic disturbance and that he was in good enough shape to use his alchemy." Izumi pointed out and Al's eyes widened slightly. He hadn't realised that, having been too focused on whether he was just imagining his brother's energy or not. He sagged a little in relief.

"I swear, Brother had better come out of this alive or I'm going to kill him myself for putting us through this." Al swore and the corner of Izumi's lips twitched. Then Al remembered something Ed had said about the other dimension. "I hope he didn't overextend himself if he did use his tracking array." He mumbled more to himself but Izumi picked it up.

"You told me when he'd knocked himself out using that array here that he could hold the array for nearly eight minutes. He knows his limits." Teacher pointed out curtly but Al shook his head.

"I know but that was here in Amestris. Brother told me that the alchemic energy in the other dimension is weak. Nearly half of what we have here so he doesn't draw it in as quickly there and when he performs alchemy, he uses more energy than he would here. He created an array that helps him draw the energy there in quicker but it doesn't stay active for more than 15 minutes, if he's lucky." Izumi's eyes widened in surprise at that information. Edward had neglected to tell her that when he'd last visited her and told her the story.

"You think he'll have pushed himself too much to figure out what he was sensing and who was creating it." It wasn't a question but Al nodded and Izumi sighed. "You're probably right. He's enough of a curious idiot to have done that. But I'm sure he'll be fine. He has Mustang there to make sure he doesn't get himself killed." Izumi pointed out and Al felt himself relax at the truth of what she said.

"Yeah, you're right. Assuming they haven't killed each other yet." Al joked and Teacher snorted before leading the way back up to the others. Hawkeye rose a brow asking if he was okay and Al nodded at her. Izumi and Al stopped near the Major.

"Young Alphonse, I was thinking over our problem and realised I hadn't asked something." Al gestured for him to go ahead. "Does alchemy work where Edward and Brigadier-General Mustang are?"

"Yes. Not as well as it does here but they can use it." He replied. A glance at Teacher showed she was curious as to where this was going.

"Hm, I'd hoped so." Armstrong said. "Shouldn't we trust them to be able to get themselves through the portal rather than having me waiting on the sidelines to assist them? This way I can lend my incredible strength that has been passed down the Armstrong line for generations to activating this array!" Al was both impressed with the idea and the fact that Armstrong hadn't ripped off his shirt. Izumi gave the idea some thought.

"I think we should trust those two idiots to get themselves through the portal, as you suggested. I take it this means you are willing to lend us your alchemy to open this portal?" She asked and Armstrong gave an enthusiastic nod. "Then it's sorted. Lend us a hand to open this portal and let's see if the three of us can get it to stay open." She said, moving back to her spot. This time Al and Armstrong put equal distance between themselves and Teacher rather than staying closer.

"Are you sure you want to try again so soon?" Hawkeye asked, eyes on Alphonse and the two non-State Alchemists nodded.

"On three." Teacher said and the two other alchemists placed their hands in position. "One. Two. Three!" They moved in perfect sync with each other and activated the array once more. Blue energy once again lit the room up, causing an electric hum to roll through the air. Al could feel how much lighter his own burden was this time and he could sense it was the same for Teacher. Something silver flashed in front of him and his eyes widened when he realised what it was.

"Stop!" He called out, panicked the object would fall back through the portal. Izumi and Armstrong immediately removed their hands when Al wrenched his back. None of them were yet out of breath but Al spared no thought to that. Instead, he clambered to his feet and ran forward, snatching the dagger out of the air as it started to fall back to the ground. The first thing he noticed was the note. The second thing he noticed was how poorly the dagger was made. He knew it wasn't Ed's just from that. The fact that it lacked the 'stylish' flair his brother usually put on his weapons was another big sign it wasn't his.

"What is it?" Izumi asked from where she stood and Al realised he was still standing in the middle of the array. Waving at Armstrong to follow him, he hurried to the others.

"It's a dagger. There's a note." Al said, pulling the note off the weapon and handing it to Izumi to look at while he read the note.

"Who is it from? What does it say?" Hawkeye asked and Al jolted a little guiltily. He'd forgotten that everyone else probably want to read it.

"It's from Mustang." He told them and saw the team exchange glances. He started reading the letter out loud.

_'Alphonse,_

_First question I know you'd want answered; Ed is fine. Both of us felt the attempts to open the portal and he used his tracking array on the second one. He used too much energy and nearly collapsed.'_  "Idiot!"  _'He is sleeping right now but gave me the idea to send you this note with the dagger. I'm sure you've noticed it's not one of your brothers. It's Moore's._

_We know you're trying to get the portal to open and stabalise so you can get us home. Ed has figured you'd have more alchemists helping you, he's assuming your teacher and Major Armstrong, and we trust that the three of you together will be strong enough to succeed with the portal but please stop. Just for a little while._

_Moore escaped our custody. I was unconscious when we arrived and your brother fought him but Edward was already fatigued and he was fighting against a stone. Edward managed to grievously wound him and relieve him of one stone but he has others. We're positive Moore doesn't know he can heal himself but he still escaped and we cannot leave here without securing Moore. Especially while he has stones at his disposal._

_We've teamed up with the BAU again and have another federal agency, NCIS, backing us. Right now, we're trying to track Moore down and get him somewhere secluded so we can tack him down with minimal risk to civilians._

_Give us three days from when you get this note. Once the three days has past, open the portal. I believe we will have him back in our custody by then, especially with the help of the two federal agencies. If you get this note, don't open a portal to reply. Just wait the three days. If no more portal attempts are made we will know you got the note._

_Alphonse, Edward told me about the promise the two of you made over your mother's grave. To not risk yourself as grievously for the other as you have done in the past. If you believe you cannot open a portal and hold it long enough for us to come through then don't do it. We'll figure out another way to come home._

_Captain Hawkeye; I imagine you've implemented our plan with the Fuhrer. Make sure everyone else knows it so they can go along with the lie. Check in with Grumman everyday as if you've received correspondence from me. Alphonse, go into the office everyday and ask whether they've heard anything from Ed. Keep this charade up and don't breathe a word about this dimension to anyone else. We can't risk people knowing this world exists and that there is a way to get here._

_Stay safe. I'll try and get Edward back in one piece but you know what he's like._

_Brigadier-General Roy Mustang.'_

Aside from Al's outburst, there had been no interruptions from anyone while he read the note out loud. Al looked up from the paper in his hands to look at the expressions on everyone's faces. None of them looked shocked. Instead, the team looked like they always did after Mustang gave them orders but before he dismissed them. Armstrong had a similar expression and Izumi looked like she actually approved of Mustang's words. Sig looked happy that Ed was okay.

"We'll follow the Brigadier-Generals order. No more attempts with the portal. We'll keep this building under surveillance so no one can come across the portal and try to use it." Hawkeye ordered the rest of her team. She then faced the Curtis'. "Will you two be able to stay in the city please? We have deals with many hotels and the military will be able to pay for your hotel room." Hawkeye offered and Al was actually curious if they could before he realised the request would go to Fuhrer Grumman and he'd approve it when Hawkeye tells him why the military has been asked to pay for their room.

"That's fine. We have things to get done in Central." Izumi said after conversing silently with her husband.

"Miss Riza, I want to help with surveillance." He offered. "I'd be able to sense if something happens with the portal." He told her, wanting to give her a legitimate reason for having him help. Her eyes told him she knew exactly what he was doing.

"Alright. We'll have a three man team on this place at all times. One man inside, two watching the front entrance. The back entrance has been sealed so no one can get in through there." Armstrong cleared his throat.

"I'm willing to offer my services to help with surveillance as well. Sergeant Brosh and Second Lieutenant Ross can both help as well. I can tell them it's classified if they ask why we're watching this building." Armstrong told her and Hawkeye nodded.

"Your assistance will be greatly appreciated." She dipped her head in thanks. "Falman, Breda, Al, take first watch. We'll rotate in six hours. No one is to leave their post until all three members of the next watch are in place." She glared a threat that promised they'd regret trying to leave a little earlier. "We'll all meet back here in exactly 72 hours."

Everyone dispersed shortly after Hawkeye had given her orders. The sharpshooter had walked out with Teacher and Sig to discuss hotel arrangements and Al had insisted he stay in the room with the array while Falman and Breda watch the front entrance. Soon, he couldn't hear anyone in the warehouse and there was no noise beyond the normal city noise outside. Al sat against a part of the wall where he could see the entrance to this level but he could easily roll behind a pillar if he needed to protect himself against someone. Three days. Three days until he could get Edward home. He just hoped his reckless brother could survive getting through those three days in one piece.


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Edward and Mustang find themselves back in another dimension but this time they're in a new city with new people and facing another rogue alchemist, only this one is out for their blood. With Truth not being involved, they must figure out how to take down the alchemist and get home. New friends and old come together to help them but will it be enough?

Edward woke up tired. He knew his body had slept for way too long but he also knew he wouldn't have woken any earlier than he had now. A quick internal check showed him that his energy levels were nearly 100% and that he was literally starving. He could of sworn he felt his stomach trying to eat itself but he also felt extremely nauseous so just the thought of eating made his stomach turn. He knew that would stop once he'd eaten something but he still had to get out of bed and find food and that just sounded like a lot of effort. A look at the clock told him it was nearly 5:00 but when he glanced outside, he could see the predawn light and realised he'd slept for nearly 24 hours. His bladder was practically begging him to get out of bed so he did as he was asked.

The first thing he did when he came out of the bathroom was actually take in his surroundings properly. Mustang was asleep in his bed and Ed was slightly surprised he hadn't woken the older alchemist up since he wasn't overly quiet on his journey to the bathroom. He watched him for another moment but Mustang wasn't faking being asleep so Ed shrugged and went looking for food. He found some plastic containers containing stuff that sort of resembled Xingese. He sniffed each container and they smelt alright so he dug into them. It wasn't until he'd finished eating the fourth container that he wondered if any of these were for Mustang. His stomach was no longer trying to devour itself but he was still hungry so he continued eating. Mustang knew the risks of leaving food unattended around Ed.

He'd polished off the last container and looked around the room some more. Now that he'd eaten, he felt so much better. He was still a little tired and he knew he should probably get some more sleep but he was too busy thinking. He found himself wishing Mustang was awake because he needed to know if he'd gotten a message to Al. The blonde sighed softly before hopping up from the table and clearing up his mess. Mustang slept through it all, to Ed's amusement. He climbed back into his bed and curled up under the blankets. It took him less time to fall asleep again than he thought it would.

* * *

 

The next time he woke up, he felt far better than he had before. Having some food and going back to bed seemed to have been the right thing to do. He glanced at the clock and saw he'd only been asleep for a little over an hour. Mustang was no longer in his bed so Ed figured he was the reason he was now awake. He sat up in bed, the sheets falling off of him to pool in his lap as his golden eyes searched for his boss. He found him in the kitchen making some coffee. That was definitely something Edward could get out bed for; fresh coffee.

"Mornin'." He offered gruffly and Mustang looked up at him.

"Wow, a 'morning' from you? You feeling okay?" His black eyes twinkled in amusement. Ed scowled but Mustang offered him a cup of coffee so his scowl lessened significantly.

"Hilarious, Mustang." He deadpanned, taking a sip of the hot drink and feeling his brain cells working a bit quicker now. "How long have you been up?" He asked, realising the man's hair was wet which meant he'd gone for a shower, though he was just dressed in his military pants and white undershirt. Ed was surprised he hadn't woken up when did. After spending so many years in the presence of someone who couldn't shower, Ed still wasn't used to hearing one running nearby. Thankfully, Gracia and Elysia both showered before he went to bed so it was very rarely he was woken up by one of them.

"Ten or so minutes." He replied, mimicking Ed and taking a sip of his own coffee. "What time did you first wake up?" He asked.

"Around 5. How'd you know I was up earlier?" The blonde asked as he sat down at the table.

"You ate all of the food." Mustang reminded him. Ed's face lit up with remembrance.

"Oh yeah." He gulped down more of his coffee. "So did anything happen while I was out?" Now that he had caffeine in his system, he was feeling a lot better and much more alert.

"I used your idea to get a message to Alphonse." Mustang told him. "We think it worked because there hasn't been any more attempts to open the portal since I threw the dagger through it." Ed sighed.

"Good." He slumped against the chair. "How much time did you ask him to give us?"

"Three days from when he got the note. Which was about noon yesterday. So we have over two days to find Moore and get him to the NCIS parking lot." Mustang told him and Ed nodded.

"That's doable." He was fairly optimistic. Two days to track down Moore should be more than enough with the help of this worlds technology. "I hope Teacher and Al come up with a way to make it less strenuous to open that portal in those three days."

"I'm sure they can." Mustang said matter-of-factually. Ed just hummed as he drank his coffee. Mustang's eyes roamed over the hotel room out of something to do when he spotted two bags. "Oh, before I forget," Mustang said as he stood and grabbed one of the bags to give to Edward, "Agent Jaraeu and Miss Garcia went out shopping for us. Apparently our clothes stand out so they bought us civilian clothing. These are yours." Ed took the bag, eyes flashing with intrigue. He looked into it and his face split into a wide grin before he disappeared into the bathroom. "I guess he liked them." Mustang muttered into his cup of coffee.

Ed had emerged five minutes later and Mustang could see why the blonde had been happy. He was wearing dark blue jeans, a black shirt with a red and gold robot looking design on it and a lightweight, red, zip-up hoodie that was currently hanging open. Mustang had to give the two blonde BAU members credit; the clothes fit Ed well and were close enough to his normal style.

"Do you even know what's on your shirt?" Mustang asked once Ed sat back down at the table, hairbrush in his hand.

"Course I do. Miss Penelope gave me a run down of something she called 'pop culture' last time I was here. This is Iron Man. He's a superhero out of some comics and movies. She told me that I reminded her of him, something about us being above genius level or something." He told him, brushing his hair and growling when the brush snagged painfully on a knot. Once he'd tamed his hair, he turned his attention back to his commanding officer. "What'd they get you?" He was curious to see what the women had thought to get Mustang.

"Just some dress pants and long-sleeved shirts." Mustang told him and Ed snorted. That sounded about right. Mustang ignored the snort as he headed into the bathroom to get dressed for the day.

* * *

They found themselves in the NCIS building a little under an hour later. Ed had been bombarded with questions about his health by nearly everyone and Mustang couldn't stop laughing when the blonde's eye started twitching in annoyance. Well, he couldn't until Ed stomped on his foot with a not-so-innocent look and an even less convincing 'whoops'. The BAU team seemed to recognise the twitch as a sign of annoyance and JJ had tactfully brought up his new outfit, asking him how he liked it and if the clothes were the right size. Ed was happy with the change in subject and thanked the two women for the clothes, who seemed very proud of themselves.

The BAU team had decided to take to the streets, interviewing everyone whose name came up in connection with the two men who were spotted with Moore. Garcia had found their identities during the previous day and had spent all day and night running their names, Joshua Champion and Trevor Holt, through every database she could think of, pulling names of family, friends, acquaintances, old co-workers, even their school teachers, before passing them onto Gibbs.

Suffice to say, there were a lot of names. Gibbs hid it well but he was relieved to hear the offer to interview the people on the list from the BAU team. After all, with his team and them combined, they could split the list between four teams. Gibbs had McGee stay back to run through every record he could get his hands on and to act as liaison between the four teams. Gibbs was running down leads from his desk, passing on anything that seemed relevant to whichever team was nearby. This left Edward and Mustang with not much to do.

At least until Abby had appeared out of thin air a few hours after the teams had headed out, nearly giving the two alchemists heart attacks. From the lack of reaction, this was something that happened to the two remaining NCIS agents often. Both were still on the phone but Abby seemed happy to wait in front of Gibbs' desk until he finished up. Once he'd placed his phone back in it's cradle, he gave Abby a look and she immediately handed the paper she was holding to him.

"I didn't find anything useful from the car park but I do have Moore's blood from his and Edward's fight if we need it. Can I steal them?" She spoke almost too fast to follow, ending her request with a thumb over her shoulder in the direction of the alchemists. Both looked up from where they were seated; Ed looking suspicious while Mustang looked bemused.

"Go ahead." Gibbs said as he placed the paper he got from her where he needed it. Abby squealed in delight before spinning on her heels and facing the alchemists and grabbed Ed by his right wrist, not even flinching at the feel of the metal prosthesis, dragging him forward. Mustang's chuckles turned into an indignant 'hey!' when he felt himself being pulled off his feet. He stumbled forward before getting his feet underneath him properly and could focus on what was happening. Edward had managed to grab him by his jacket and was dragging him along. He glared at the blonde who simply rolled his eyes.

"If I have to go, so do you. Deal with it." Ed told him, leaving no room for argument. Mustang huffed in annoyance and pulled his jacket out of his grip but continued following them as they piled into the elevator. Only once the doors had shut did Abby let go of her hostage. Ed took the opportunity to tuck his hands into his hoodie pocket to prevent any more dragging. "So what's up anyways?" He asked the raven haired woman.

"You wanted to see the results from the tests I did on your blood." She reminded him. "Technically I got the results back yesterday but you weren't here so I couldn't tell you." She said as the elevator dinged and the doors slid open. They followed her into the lab and Mustang took his sweet time looking around. He hadn't been given the tour yet so Abby rectified that situation before showing them Edwards blood results. Once Abby was satisfied that Mustang was suitably impressed with her lab, she returned to the main computers in the first third of her lab and pulled up some different things on the screens before moving aside with a big, sweeping 'ta da!' gesture.

"Alright." Ed said after a few seconds of looking at each item. "I'll admit it. I have no clue what I'm supposed to be looking at."

"I thought you were supposed to be a genius." Mustang quipped and Ed gave him a bored look.

"Alright, smart ass, what's it mean?" He asked, waving a hand at the screens and raising a brow as he waited. Mustang couldn't answer. "That's what I thought." Ed sounded a little smug. Abby decided now was the best time to talk.

"See, look here." She pointed to two different areas on one of the screens. "This is your DNA profile. Basically, we can figure out your race, gender, age, hair colour, eye colour, blood type and any anomalies from this. These two spots are what's so interesting. Your race is completely unknown to our databases. That's not really surprising since you're not from here but it's still fascinating. But the really interesting thing is this anomaly." She pointed it out again. "I have no clue what it is. It isn't any kind of blood disease or genetic mutation I've ever seen and I can't find anything close to it anywhere." Mustang could tell this had captured all of Edward's interest and he'd be lying if he said he wasn't intrigued himself.

"Huh." The blonde said as he looked at the image of his DNA. "What do you think it means?" Curious gold eyes found hers and she almost hesitated in voicing her theory.

"Well, I think it has something to do with your alchemy." She told him. "Of course, I don't really have a way to prove that so I can't be sure." She sighed wistfully.

"I think I know how you can test your theory." Ed said, smirking a little. Abby looked interested whereas Mustang looked worried for his personal health. "Stab him and test his blood." He said, pointing at Mustang. Abby's eyes lit up in excitement.

"Why didn't I think of that?! Thanks, Ed!" She grabbed him into a quick but tight hug before releasing him just as suddenly and turning on Mustang. "Can I take some of your blood? Please?" Mustang looked like he wanted to refuse so Ed decided to jump in before he could.

"Let me put it this way, Mustang." His eyes flashed menacingly. "I want to know what that is so either you let her take some or I'll take it." Mustang believed him. Not much could stop Edward Elric from solving a mystery he was interested in and he doubted Edward would be as nice as Miss Sciuto.

"Fine. You can draw a sample of my blood." Mustang sighed before putting a hand up to halt Abby's excitement. "However, on one condition. You have to destroy any samples of mine, Fullmetal's and Moore's blood you have after we've caught him. I won't let that sort of thing stay in this world."

"I can do that." She promised and he believed her. He was sent down to Ducky with instructions to get him to draw the blood for her. He didn't bother arguing.

* * *

 

The elderly doctor didn't surprised by the request. In fact, he'd chuckled fondly and said he'd been wondering how long it would take Abby to get him to agree to this. The blood was drawn and Mustang sent on his way within five minutes of him sitting down. The doctor apologised for asking him leave so quickly but he had a guest coming in, something that confused Mustang but he did as he was asked, assuring the doctor it was okay.

"That was quick." Ed commented when he entered the lab once again.

"Doctor Mallard said something about having a guest coming in?" Mustang said as he handed the small tube of blood over to an eager Abby.

"Yeah. That's Ducky's way of saying he's expecting a corpse soon." Abby said almost absentmindedly as she moved around them, prepping the blood as needed. Ed and Mustang exchanged a slightly shocked look at that little tidbit of information. "It's just one of his quirks." She said, noticing the look out of the corner of her eye.

"Eh, we're all a bit quirky." Ed said with a shrug. "Mustang especially." Abby giggled at the exasperated look on Mustang's face. Ed just smirked at him before facing the forensic scientist and asking her questions about the tests she was running. She happily answered all of them until Ed ended up running out questions. Mustang snuck a glance at the clock and was surprised to see how long they had been down here for. He cleared his throat to catch the two others attention.

"We should head back up and see if the agents have made any progress." He said and Ed sighed. He was probably right.

"Let us know when you've gotten the results please, Miss Abby." Ed requested and Abby assured them she would as she waved them out of her lab. The elevator took back up to the floor Gibbs' team was situated and headed over to their bull-pen to find that the other half of their team had rejoined them and were grouped around Gibbs' desk. DiNozzo spotted them first and offered a half wave before focusing back on whatever Gibbs was telling them.

"What's going on?" Mustang asked as soon as they were close enough and the four of them looked up at him before the three younger members glanced at Gibbs.

"We got a report of someone spotting Moore, Holt and Champion in a less inhabited part of the city. I'm waiting for confirmation on the witness's reliability before we take any action though. That area is known for junkies." Gibbs told them. "Miss Garcia is checking for any working security cameras in the area to see if we can confirm their story." Ed was interested to know how they were going to figure out if the witness was reliable and so he asked.

"He agreed to a drug test." DiNozzo answered before any of them could. "If he comes back clean or at least clean during the time in question, we can be more trusting of his word."

"Huh. Cool." Ed said. "How long until you find out?" He asked and DiNozzo looked at his watch.

"Within the hour." DiNozzo said and Ed was duly impressed. Their drug tests back in Amestris always took forever to give them results. Ed could see that Mustang was impressed as well.

"So did anything interesting happen while you were interviewing people?" Ed asked and DiNozzo launched into a story about one of Champion's relatives they'd interviewed. Evidently, the woman had smelled like kitty litter and had spent half the time they were there trying to convince Ziva to adopt a ferret. Ziva had decided to up his story and tell them about DiNozzo being forced to stay in the car because the small, fluffy dog another person they interviewed owned didn't like him and the owner wanted his 'negative energy' away from her precious baby.

Tony had taken this as a challenge and proceeded to tell Ed and Mustang about other embarrassing moments for Ziva from other cases. Ziva had retaliated; always having a story for each of Tony's. Ed thought it was hilarious and even Mustang had struggled to not laugh at them. McGee had looked disinterested but every now and then he'd make a comment about a case they hadn't mentioned and either Tony or Ziva (depending on who the story didn't embarrass) would launch into that tale. McGee had quickly hid a shit-eating grin when Ed looked at him. The story challenge had halted when Gibbs got a phone call.

"Gibbs." He answered and listened for the thirty seconds it took the caller to make his point. "Thanks. Have him make a statement then release him." He ordered, snapping his phone shut.

"Who was that, boss?" Tony asked, standing straight and becoming more professional.

"Results are back. Our witness has been deemed reliable. Tony, Ziva, follow up on the lead." Gibbs ordered and both agents immediately moved to follow the order. Edward stood up.

"Can I go? I'm bored and I want food." Tony and Ziva paused, looking at Gibbs for his answer. Gibbs appeared to contemplate for a moment.

"Sure. As long as you follow their lead." Mustang had never seen the blonde agree to follow orders so eagerly. Mustang's eyes followed Ed all the way to the elevator and watched the blonde enter. Ed caught sight of Mustang's worried gaze and rolled his eyes theatrically but still managed to smile reassuringly at the man just before the doors slid shut.

"That could either end really well or horribly catastrophic." Mustang remarked as he headed over to Agent David's desk.

"How so?" McGee asked and Gibbs looked up, mildly interested.

"There are dozens of things Fullmetal is a genius with and dozens of things he is well-know for in our world. Having patience and being tactful aren't on any of those lists." McGee snorted but Mustang was surprised to see a contemplative expression of Gibbs' face.

"How is it that Edward came about to being recruited, if you don't mind me asking? To be recruited in this country into any military branch, you have to meet certain criteria and be willing to conform to the rules. Edward does not strike me as that kind of person." Gibbs leant back in his chair and McGee couldn't keep the curious look off of his face. Mustang contemplated his answer for a little bit.

"I recruited Fullmetal into the military when he was 12. Before you say anything," Mustang's eyes flashed as the two agents stared at him in disbelief, "there were a specific set of circumstances that helped me make my decision. I'm not going to tell what they were. He and his brother needed help only the military could provide and in exchange for that, Fullmetal only ever answered to me or the Fuhrer and had free reign to do whatever he wanted as long as he completed the missions given to him. As a State Alchemist, he was held to a different standard than the average soldier. Fullmetal knew exactly where the line was and he never once crossed it, the war with Father aside. He may have bent it, cracked it even, but never once has he crossed it." Mustang told them. Mustang felt kind of proud that he was the first one out of the Amestrians and the BAU to have thrown Gibbs through enough of a loop that he lost his professional mask.

"You recruited him when he was 12?" McGee asked, sounding faint.

"I didn't actively seek him out to recruit him. There had been rumours flying around that there was an exceptionally powerful alchemist in his home town. I went to Resembool believing the alchemist I would find was Fullmetal and Alphonse's father. I had briefly known him from the time of the Ishvalen Civil War. What I found was a 9 and 11 year old who were both powerful enough to perform a transmutation powerful enough that it should've decimated them. Fullmetal alone could've powered that array and still come out alive. Again, like I said before, Fullmetal and his brother were in a lot of trouble. His joining the military opened avenues for him to solve that problem that would ordinarily have stayed firmly shut. Besides, if I hadn't recruited him-"

"Someone else would have." Gibbs finished for him and Mustang nodded.

"I may have not been the ideal commanding officer for a 12 year old but I am not exaggerating when I say that I was the best option he had and both of us knew it. Even if he is a complete shit most of the time." Mustang sighed. "Thankfully, he was never booted out of the military for his extreme lack of manners or respect for higher-ranking officers he didn't like. Granted, that probably had to do more with him and his brother being sacrifices in Father's apocalyptic plans than anything else but the fact that he is a literal genius did help things there." He shrugged as he leaned back in the chair.

"Would you do it the same way if you got the chance?" Gibbs asked and Mustang sat back up.

"Yes." He said without hesitation. "There are certain things I'd change but none of the main parts that led to where we are now. I'd still go to Resembool and offer him a job, I'd still send him of most of the missions he's done, I'd still let him learn the horrific things he has learnt, like what a Philosopher's Stone truly is, I'd still do all of that and Fullmetal would be agreeing with me if he were right here." Mustang told them with absolutely no room for doubt. The two agents didn't say anything, couldn't really say anything, simply nodded before getting back to work.

* * *

Ed watched the scenery roll by from the sedan's back window. He'd spent some of the time in the quiet car amusing himself by trying to remember the route back to the NCIS building by picking the weirdest landmarks he could find. Tony and Ziva were mostly quiet though they did ask Ed some questions that had been bothering them since he'd dropped in, literally. Finally they'd run out of questions and now the discussion was on what to have for lunch. Ziva wanted Ed to try some of her country's cuisine, a comment that had sparked a few curious questions about Israel and Ziva from Ed, and Tony was all for something classically American. Ed had to admit that both options sounded really good right now.

"Miss Ziva, the food from your country sounds really good. How about we save it as our reward for catching Moore? American food is always readily available after all." Ed offered as a compromise.

"Okay. But if we have Israeli food, I'll cook it." She decided and Tony looked a little offended.

"It took you months to cook for me!" He cried and Ziva winked at Ed.

"Yes, well, he has better manners than you." Ed laughed at Tony's pout. It was honestly ridiculous looking on the older man. "But this means we get burgers for lunch. They had better be good burgers." Ziva threatened.

"What do you take me for? I refuse to eat sub-standard food. We'll have the best burgers in the city after we're done here." Tony swore as he pulled the car up in front of the run down building the junkie witness had told them about. Ed looked at it critically.

"It looks like one good push and it'd fall over." He commented dryly and Ziva chuckled as they climbed out of the car. It didn't look much better up close. "Seriously. Those stairs don't look like they'd support a cat, let alone us." Both NCIS grimaced at the condition of the front steps. Edward was probably right.

"I believe the saying is 'senior field agents first', yes?" Ziva asked, looking pointedly at Tony. Ed sighed before getting as close as possible and clapping his hands. "Ed, wait!" Ziva's cry was ignored as he placed them to the ground and activated his chosen array. Ten seconds later, he had the answers they needed.

"Moore's not in there. No one is. There is someone in that alleyway," he pointed behind himself and to his left, "but he looks homeless." He wobbled a bit but was surprisingly feeling fine. He did activate his absorbing array though, just in case.

"I'll go question the homeless dude." DiNozzo offered before heading in the direction Ed pointed him in.

"Don't be so reckless next time! What if you'd collapsed again?" Ziva scolded a startled Edward as soon as DiNozzo was gone.

"I wouldn't have. Not from a tracking array that localised. Plus, being reckless would've been us going in that building." He pointed out.

"True but you still need to be careful." She scolded gently and Ed huffed but didn't argue like he would've with Al or Mustang. DiNozzo emerged from the alleyway and Ed frowned.

"Bet you the homeless guy saw nothing." Ed said, nodding towards the male NCIS agent.

"Hey, do you mind me asking something a little personal?" Ziva asked as they watched Tony meander towards them.

"No but I won't answer if I don't want to." He told her and Ziva nodded.

"Do you and the Brigadier-General get along?" Ed frowned at her, curious as to where this question came from but she didn't say anything.

"Well, yeah. We may not act like we do but we do care about each other, somewhat. Even if he's an egotistical dick. Like, we care enough about each other that we would fight for each other and would be upset if the other one got hurt or died but we don't spend time together unless it's mission-related. But I know he wouldn't put me or my brother in any more danger than we could handle and I know he cares about us, even if he can't show it." Ed shrugged.

"Why can't he show it?" Ziva asked and Ed shrugged a shoulder.

"'Cuz he's literally the only fire alchemist in the country, any country from what we know, and I'm widely acknowledged as the expert in practically every alchemic field. If I can't do a particular style of alchemy, I study it as much as I can and within a few months - at most - I'm an expert in it. But there is absolutely nothing written about fire alchemy and the only person who has that knowledge and is still alive is Mustang. People know both of these things and if people thought we got along, some of them would have thought I had been told the secrets to fire alchemy and they would have tried to get that information at any cost." Edward explained. "I mean, a few did try, despite the fact that Mustang and I were constantly trying to tear each others throats out but word finally spread that I knew shit about fire alchemy and that kidnapping me never worked out well for the kidnappers." DiNozzo had finally joined them by this stage and both agents looked shocked at what he was telling them. "What?" He asked snappishly.

"You've been kidnapped? More than once?" DiNozzo asked and Ed looked at him weirdly.

"Well, yeah." He said and they still looked both sad and disbelieving. "State Alchemists aren't the most popular people considering their role in the Ishvalen Civil War. Plus, like I said, I'm beyond a genius in alchemy. There are also a few crazies who think alchemy isn't natural and those who use it are 'abominations' which is kinda stupid considering you're born with alchemic talent. There were some people who thought they could trade my life for the release of their friends, family or group leader. I've been kidnapped so that that person could brag that he'd kidnapped the 'People's Alchemist'." He only listed a few of the reasons he'd personally been kidnapped for.

"Oh my god." DiNozzo sounded slightly stunned and Ed smirked at him but before he could say anything in response, his stomach growled.

"Oh, yeah. I'm hungry. Can we get food now?" Ed asked, suddenly remembering the whole reason he came with them. The two of them didn't move. "Guys? Get burgers now; be weird later." Ed said.

"'Weird' is Tony's default setting." Ziva quipped almost on autopilot but the little joke did stop them from gaping at Edward and actually get moving again.

"You're the weird one." DiNozzo sulked back as they climbed in the car.

"Oooh, burn." Ed deadpanned from the backseat, which sent Ziva cackling and DiNozzo pouting. DiNozzo assured them he knew the perfect place to get some classic American burgers and Ziva made a face like she didn't believe him but he paid no attention to it. It took them a good half an hour of driving to get there, during which Ziva called Gibbs to give him the bad news. They went into the restaurant and placed their orders before Ziva and Ed went to wait by the car, leaving DiNozzo to bring out their food.

* * *

 

They chatted about everything and nothing, both steering clear of uncomfortably personal questions by some unspoken agreement. Both of them noticed the large, dark blue van pull up behind the sedan and both tensed slightly, their instincts telling them they were in danger. Five men piled out of the van, various builds and colours, all five pretending they weren't looking right at Edward. They wandered to the burger shop, aiming for casual and missing by a mile. As soon as they were just in front of Edward and Ziva, they attacked but the two of them were ready.

Edward's first punch broke the guy's nose and sent him reeling back, blood pouring down his face. An elbow to the throat sent the second man to his knees as he struggled to draw in a breath. Ziva had two on her but was holding her own well enough that Edward was impressed. He wondered what would happen in a non-alchemy spar between Al and her. The fifth guy approached more carefully than the last two and Ed could just tell he had some kind of training in hand-to-hand. His fight with him was almost as challenging as a fight against Al but ultimately Edward took him out with a carefully executed blow to the temple, knocking the man out cold. The first two attackers had regained their feet and Ed was now fighting in a situation similar to Ziva. He saw DiNozzo exit the burger place, weapon drawn but still at his side and Ed knew he wouldn't be able to help without risking civilians.

"Stop. Unless you want me to kill her." DiNozzo's eyes widened slightly and Ed knew from his expression what had happened even before he turned around. One of Ziva's attackers had gotten a drop on the Israeli. He turned to face the man, Champion if he was remembering correctly, and saw him with an arm wrapped around Ziva's neck and a pistol pressed tightly against her temple. Her second attacker also had a weapon trained on her. Ed could see it in her face. She couldn't get herself out of this without getting shot and both of them knew Ed wasn't quick enough to take the two men out without one of them or a bystander getting hurt or killed.

Ed managed to make a couple of hand gestures behind his back before his arms were grabbed roughly from the two men he hadn't knocked out and he hoped DiNozzo had seen them as he and Ziva were dragged to the van and shoved inside. They had two men in the back with them, the one with the broken nose and the second was the man who held the second gun on Ziva. This time the gun was aimed right at Ed, who gave the pistol a rather bored look. Ed noticed the man who'd been knocked out hadn't put in the van with them which meant they'd left him behind. The van's tyres squealed harshly and Ed caught a whiff of burnt rubber as they sped away from the scene. Mustang was gonna be so pissed when he found out Ed had been kidnapped in this dimension.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Edward and Mustang find themselves back in another dimension but this time they're in a new city with new people and facing another rogue alchemist, only this one is out for their blood. With Truth not being involved, they must figure out how to take down the alchemist and get home. New friends and old come together to help them but will it be enough?

Ziva and Ed sat flush against each other's side against the side of the van, watching the two men in the back like hawks. Ziva was bleeding from a head wound and her cheek looked swollen and bruised. Ed had come out of the fight with nothing more than a split lip. The man Ed had hit first though wasn't as lucky. His nose was undoubtedly broken. Both of his eyes had been blackened and his nose was practically flat against his face now. Blood still trickled from it and Ed did not envy the man through the healing process. Assuming he survived this first.

The van was still speeding and they were making all sorts of turns. Ed figured either this hide out was really well-hidden or the men were trying to throw off anyone who might be following them. After travelling for nearly an hour, they finally pulled up to an abandoned apartment complex and the van was driven into the underground parking space. They came to a stop and Ziva and Ed were pulled roughly out the van and had a gun pressed to each of their backs to make them walk forward.

Ed saw Ziva contemplating about disarming the man behind her, something the two of them could easily do, but Ed caught her eye and shook his head slightly. She looked confused but barely nodded. She'd follow his lead on this for the moment. The walk was ripe with tension and Ed could have sworn he'd seen a few doors open just a crack as they walked past. That complicated matters. If there were innocents civilians here, Ed would have to be more careful when the fight eventually broke out.

They were marched up to a room on the sixth floor and shoved inside. The four men hadn't said a word during the entire drive and subsequent walk. They split into two teams, two to handle Ziva and the other to handle Ed. Ziva was forced to sit on a dodgy looking chair before her wrists were handcuffed together and she was tied to the chair. She had glared at all of them defiantly but she didn't struggle. Yet.

Ed was forced to sit on the ground, back against the side of the bed while his arms were stretched out as far as they could go and tied to the bed frames legs. His own legs were left untied but his shoulders were already aching from how tightly his arms were being pulled. The man with the broken nose, Ed had dubbed him 'Dick 1', punched him in the jaw, snapping his head to the side. Ed faced the man, looking bemused.

"That was for my nose." He growled out and Ed let out a huff of laughter.

"It's an improvement if you ask me." He snarked and was rewarded with another punch. The second man, Holt, grabbed him by the arm and pulled him back.

"Leave him for the boss. You know what Moore said. He wants him as uninjured as possible." He said, voice firm and keeping his eyes locked on the other mans until Dick 1 shoved him off and headed for the door. This left Holt, Champion and Dick 2 in the room with them.

"I hope you realise," Ed said as the three others made to follow, "that Moore has absolutely no intention of keeping whatever promises he made you. I'd bet money that he's planning to kill you all as soon as he's done with me and Mustang." He watched them with a completely bored expression on his face.

"He's already kept his promise." Dick 2, the man who Ed had elbowed in the throat, pulled out a gold bar from his backpack. Ed took one look at it and snorted.

"You think that's real?" He laughed before looking at their faces. "Aw you poor, naive bastards. I almost feel sorry for you." He simpered and they exchanged glances before Holt spoke up.

"It's real. We watched Moore make it with our own eyes. Anyone with God-given powers like that is someone who worthy of them. A man worthy of a blessing like that from the Lord would never lie about what he creates or break promises he's made." Ed looked stunned.

"Oh for fuck's sake! You really think he's got gifts from some fucking god?! You're dumber than I thought. He's using a small, red stone to do the shit he's doing and that stone was creating by slaughtering hundreds, if not thousands, of innocent people." Ed spat and watched as they reeled back from his anger. "I don't give two fucks if you believe me or not. Take that useless lump of metal to a jeweler or bank or somewhere they can tell you whether it's real or not. Don't come sooking to me when they tell what I did." Ed looked at the gold bar and scoffed at it. The three men looked at him before looking back at each other and leaving abruptly.

"Edward, are you alright?" Ziva whispered as she tested her bonds. They were tied well. She couldn't get out of them.

"Totally fine." Ed promised as he pulled on his restraints. Sighing when that didn't work, he concentrated on his right hand. If he just get to the spot he needed... Yes! He managed to hit a hidden switch and a small, sharp blade emerged from his index finger. It had taken a lot of begging and pleading with Winry to add the blade in after his third kidnapping. He'd been tied similarly to this and he couldn't get loose. Thankfully, Al had found him before anyone else. It took numerous attempts for Winry to get it perfect. The blade was small, thin and flexible so it didn't mess with the movement of the finger but once release, it became stiffer so Ed could use it. He sawed through the rope and let out a small sigh of relief when it finally snapped and his shoulders were no longer stretched out so much. He quickly undid his left hand and put the blade away. His left wrist was red but not too sore so he just shook it to get the blood circulating again before moving over to Ziva. He undid the ropes and she picked the handcuffs as soon as she could. "You good?" He asked, eyeing up her rapidly bruising cheek.

"This is nothing I haven't had before." She said before moving towards the window. "We need to go." She said but Ed stopped her.

"No, we need to wait." He said and she gave a stunned look. "Just for like ten or so minutes. What I said to them will have made them go to the nearest place to get that gold looked at or they will have gone to Moore. Either way, we need to wait until they have had enough time to do either so we don't get caught." Ed pointed out to her.

"So we wait?" She sighed and Ed nodded. They both sat on the floor, Ed not trusting the look of the bed, and waited. They didn't talk much, worried that doing so would attract the attention of anyone guarding the room and they'd come in to make they hadn't escaped. The ten minutes they'd agreed on ticked by slowly. Finally the time passed and they got to their feet and looked out the window. There was a fire escape on the side of the building but it wasn't outside their window. It was lined up with the apartments next to them. Ed eyed the distance and the side of the building and was reasonably certain he'd be able to make it across with no help but he wasn't certain Ziva could.

"Do you think you could jump that distance or use the side of the building to climb across?" He whispered and moved out of her way for a better look.

"I can do it." She nodded completely certain. She'd had to do this sort of thing a few times when she was with Mossad. Ed didn't question her, trusting that she was being honest. He pulled himself out of the window and gripped the ledge before getting his feet firmly planted on the side of the building and rocking himself side to side before launching across the gap, fingers stretched out ready to grab. He caught himself using his automail arm on the side railing of the fire escape and a groan escaped as his full body weight pulled on his port but he made it and clambered over the railing before standing aside for Ziva.

She mimicked his method. Clinging to the window ledge, she planted her feet, built up a little momentum and threw herself towards the fire escape. She grabbed the same railing Ed did and let out a gasp as her body hit the railing. She felt her fingers loosening when her body hit and for one frightening moment she thought she might actually slip but Ed was right there, pulling her up and over so they were both standing on the same level.

"Thanks." She said as she straightened up.

"Don't mention it." Ed said before they headed down the stairs. Once they hit the ground, Ziva had a look around to see if she knew where they were. She didn't so they just headed away from the building. "So what's the plan now?" Ziva asked but Ed's answer was cut off when red energy sparked up the side of the building they were running next too. Ed pushed Ziva onto the road and both paused as chunks of the building smashed into the pavement they'd just been standing on. Ed looked back towards the complex they'd been held out and saw an irate Moore with his hand raised. Ed nudged Ziva to keep going as he flipped Moore off and followed her.

"Now we need to find somewhere we can fight without hurting anyone." Ed said as they dodged attack after attack. A glance back showed Moore and at least two guys, Holt and Champion from the looks of it, hauling ass after them. "It also needs to be a place where I can send a message to Mustang so he can find us!" Ed said, moving to his left to avoid another attack.

"What kind of message?" Ziva asked as she pulled Ed sharply around a corner. She glanced over at him and saw him grinning.

"I need to blow something up." He said simply.

* * *

Mustang still couldn't believe what he'd heard when DiNozzo had gotten back to the office after a phone call to Gibbs. Of course Edward had gone and gotten himself kidnapped in this dimension. He honestly didn't know why he was surprised. All of the BAU agents had been back from their interviews when DiNozzo had called. Everyone had been anxiously waiting for DiNozzo to turn up. Everyone except Mustang, that is.

"I couldn't take a shot, not with all the bystanders around. I don't think they even realised I was there. One of them grabbed Ziva around the throat and held a gun to her head. Edward immediately gave himself up. He signed a couple of things before they grabbed him but I didn't recognise any of them. They were gone before I could even get in the car. I could an ambulance for the man Edward knocked out and I came here once he was gone. I'm sorry, Boss." He said, looking angry at himself. Mustang cut off whatever Gibbs would've said to Tony.

"You said he made some signs?" He asked.

"Yeah but I don't know what they meant." DiNozzo reminded him and Mustang made an impatient gesture.

"You wouldn't; they'd have been Amestrian. What were the signs? Can you make them?" He asked and DiNozzo's eyes lit up as he realised where Mustang was going with this.

"They were like this, I think." He said, making the gestures and Mustang groaned.

"What is it?" Hotch asked him.

"You need to get Miss Garcia to put some feelers out. Tell her look for an explosion or something of the likes. Fullmetal is going to create a very big, messy 'here I am' sign for us." He told them and JJ was immediately on the phone to the blonde tech genius.

"We need to start searching for them. Let's check the cameras in the area; see if we can't track that van." Gibbs said and his two remaining team members immediately jumped into action.

"Checking security cameras in front of the restaurant for the van." McGee told them as DiNozzo looked over his shoulder.

"That's the van there." He pointed to the screen and Gibbs faced the big screen.

"Put the feed up on the plasma. Run from the time Edward and Ziva walked out." Gibbs ordered and McGee did as he was told. Soon they were all watching the feed for themselves. Mustang almost felt bad for the two guys Ed hit first. An automail elbow to the throat was never fun. Ziva had been handling the two she was fighting admirably until one pulled a gun out. She hesitated for a split second but it was long enough for the second guy to get the drop on her. Ed had just knocked out the third man and was squaring off the first two once again when he suddenly stopped and turned to face Ziva. Mustang could see him calculating each scenario before he put his hands behind his back, making the signs to DiNozzo they assumed. He was grabbed and dragged with Ziva to the van before they were thrown in and the kidnappers took off, leaving the fifth man behind.

"Edward didn't use any of his alchemy. He just gave up." Morgan said, looking at Mustang.

"No and he wouldn't have." Mustang said in response. "He wouldn't have risked the bystanders. It's different in Amestris. People know what alchemy is and they know that if an alchemic fight breaks out, they need to get out of the way. Look at the people who witnessed this fight." He said, gesturing to the civilians just standing there and watching. "Now imagine if they saw something you people call 'magic'."

"It is possible they would have thought it to be a street performance and more people would have gathered." Rossi said and Mustang nodded.

"Fullmetal knows they wouldn't have gotten out of the way. His hand-to-hand is damn near unbeatable. But surely even you could tell that once they hand two guns trained on Miss Ziva, there would've been no way to get her out of it without one of those guns firing and her getting hit." Mustang told them and the agents realised he was right. Mustang looked at their crestfallen faces and rolled his eyes. "Look, I'm willing to bet that we have, at most, two hours before Fullmetal finds something to blow up or breaks a building. Why don't we try and figure out what area they're in at least? That way we can prepare for this fight." Mustang suggested and the agents nodded before they did just that.

They'd found the van and followed it using the CCTV cameras the city had before losing it in area that Gibbs and DiNozzo had said was home to people who were less affluent lived. Criminals and immigrants mainly. An hour and a half after Edward had been taken, Garcia phoned them from her tech dungeon.

"Someone filmed and posted a video online five minutes ago that I think you guys should watch." Was all she said before the plasma screen lit up and they gathered around it once more.

* * *

Edward and Ziva couldn't believe their luck. They'd been running for nearly fifteen minutes, Moore, Champion and Holt right on their tail and they still hadn't been hit. They didn't bother returning fire; Ziva's gun had been taken and Ed couldn't perform any alchemy without risking himself or her. Suddenly, they found themselves in a familiar area. They were near the building they'd visited that morning, Ziva told Ed when he pointed out the familiarity of the place. That gave Ed the opportunity he needed.

"Let's put some distance between us and them." He said and they both dug deep, pushing themselves to gain speed. Ed slid to a stop in front of the building they'd visited when he felt something make his neck prickle. They were being watched. Ed looked behind him and saw a young black man, maybe 14 or so, watching them disinterestedly from between two buildings. Ed jogged over to him, Ziva close behind.

"Hi. What's your name?" Ed asked once they were in front of him. The boy sat up wearily.

"Tim." He said, eyes flicking continuously between the two.

"Awesome. You got a phone that can take videos and put them up on the internet?" Ed asked and the boy nodded. Ed flashed him a grin. "Excellent. I need you to hide here and film me. Three dudes are gonna be here any second now. We're gonna fight and I need it to be posted online to get back to some friends of mine. Can you do it?" Ed asked and the boy contemplated.

"$20." He said and Ed nodded.

"Fine. Once the video has been posted, you'll get paid. You need to post it everywhere though." Tim agreed. "Miss Ziva, you need to stay with him." Ed said when she went to follow him.

"No." She argued but Ed stood firm.

"You don't have your gun and you don't have alchemy. Please stay here so you don't get hurt anymore because of me." He asked her and he could see she still wanted to argue but a flash of red energy upended a broken down car and she moved back to stand next to Tim. "Thank you. Start recording." He nodded to Tim who held a phone up in response, eyes widened slightly.

Edward ran across the deserted road, avoiding attacks from Moore with ease as he reached the building. Instead of downing the building like he wanted to, he launched his own attacks at Moore and his lackeys. Gunshots rang out and Ed realised Holt and Champion had their guns still. Ziva screamed out his name but he didn't react. Instead, he focused his attacks on the two Americans. It didn't take long to single out the guns and aim an attack at them but he did leave himself vulnerable when he did. His attack worked; both guns blew up in their users hands and two separate blood-curdling screams were heard as their fingers and hands were mangled. Both collapsed from pain and shock. Moore paid no attention to either of them and the stone pillar he sent to Edward hit it's mark. Ed was sent flying back nearly a dozen feet before he flipped himself and used his automail hand as an anchor to stop himself. He clapped and sent dozens of spikes back at Moore.

Moore was forced to move to dodge the ferociously quick attack and Ed used that opportunity to collapse the building next to him. He didn't need to extent a lot of energy to do so. He remembered how the building was set up from the small tracking array he'd used earlier so all he did was hit it in a couple of weak spots. The building shook violently before it gave way suddenly. The eight story building collapsed in on itself, sending dust and chunks of debris flying everywhere. Moore built a wall to shield himself, leaving the two collapsed men vulnerable. Ed sent two lots of the same array towards them and created a shelter from the stone before he headed straight for Ziva and Tim.

"You got all that?" Tim nodded and was looking at Edward in a very freaked out manner. "You posted it?"

"Yeah. I livestreamed the whole thing. I'll share it everywhere I can as well." He said and Ed nodded. The dust from the building was still hiding them for the moment.

"Okay. We gotta go. Come with us." He said as he and Ziva took off running once again. Tim didn't argue, he just followed. They ran for another five minutes before stopping. "Okay. Share that video everywhere. You might be contacted by someone from the FBI called Penelope Garcia. If that happens, tell her we'll be one block down that way," Ed pointed to his right, "and that we're being pursued by Moore. Also, ask her to give you the twenty. I don't have any money on me right now and you need to get out of here before that man catches up." Tim just nodded and tore off down the block in the opposite direction to where Ed had pointed.

"Come on, Ed, let's go." Ziva said, pulling his arm lightly. Ed followed her and they headed one block up before turning right then right again to end up on the opposite side of Moore. They could see down the road and the dust was still settling. Neither of them could see Moore.

"How long do you think it'll take for them to see that video?" Ed asked and Ziva thought it over.

"Well, it depends on where Tim posted it but maybe half an hour? Less if Garcia is looking for videos that meet certain requirements." Ziva told him and Ed nodded. Both of them rested against a wall and Ed activated his absorbing array. He hadn't used much energy but he had a feeling he'd need all the energy he could get.

* * *

The video on the plasma started off with red energy dancing in front of the old, run down building that DiNozzo had immediately identified. Suddenly Edward ran out from somewhere off screen and whoever was filming moved to keep Edward in the shot but so they could also who he was fighting against. Ziva was no where to be seen. Ed sent back some attacks and suddenly gunshots rang out and they could hear Ziva call the blonde's name. Edward sent two new attacks forward and the guns that two of the men were holding exploded and everyone winced when their screams pierced the air.

Everyone let out gasps when Edward was hit by the stone pillar and sent flying but the blonde quickly recovered and sent stone spikes back at Moore. While Moore was distracted, Ed brought the building down in less of a spectacular fashion than what he would've done in Amestris. The video showed the resulting dust and debris swallowing Moore and his downed men and it showed Edward's blue alchemy creating barriers to protect the fallen men from any further injury while Moore protected himself. Mustang felt disgust at the rogue Amestrian roll through his body. The video cut off as Edward jogged over to join Ziva and whoever was filming.

"Of course he destroyed a building." Mustang deadpanned, causing the agents around him to startle slightly. Suddenly the little office area was in full action mode.

"DiNozzo, get the car. You lot," Gibbs made a gesture to all of the BAU agents, "follow us." He said and suddenly they were all heading for the elevator. Mustang tagged along with them. They had to take two elevator trips but soon enough they were all piled into the cars and speeding through the security check out. Mustang was travelling with the NCIS agents to make sure he was first on the scene.

* * *

 

The drive out there seemed to take forever and no time at all. DiNozzo could see where the final corner was before the building would be in front of it and went to turn only to find his way blocked by a black-skinned teenager. Slamming his brakes on, he watched in the rear vision mirror as the two SUV's behind did the same and breathed out slowly when they didn't rear end him. The kid approached his window and he rolled it down a quarter of the way, after Gibbs gave him a nod.

"You the FBI?" The boy asked. "That kid, Edward, said the FBI might be here soon." He told this and Mustang leant forward.

"No, I'm his boss. The FBI is behind us. You're the kid who filmed him, right?" Mustang asked and the boy nodded.

"Edward said to tell you that he'd be down that block," He pointed to the direction he'd watched the blonde and the scary lady run down, "but he turned the corner so I think they're back where I was filmin' them. He said someone called Moore was fightin' them. He also said you'd be the ones payin' me." The boy told them, hand out for the cash.

"How much?" DiNozzo asked.

"Twenty." He told them, hand still held out. DiNozzo looked at Gibbs and McGee.

"Either of you got any money? I think I got a ten left." He said and McGee sighed before digging out his wallet and slapping a twenty into Tony's hand. "Here you go, kid. Thanks for your help." DiNozzo said as the boy nodded and left. Tony drove the car forward slowly, stopping a few metres from the T-intersection that had the now collapsed building right in front of it. Everyone piled out of the cars and Gibbs gave the BAU the low-down on what the kid had said. Mustang could hear the sounds of fighting coming from their left. The familiar sound of Edward's claps made the knot of worry that had slowly tightened the longer they went without information after his disappearance loosen a little.

"Alright. The BAU and us will be acting as back-up for the Brigadier-General and Edward. If we can, we will be getting Ziva out of harms way first. I doubt they left her armed when they took her and Edward." Gibbs said as they all took their guns from their holsters, holding them parallel to their thighs. A shot rang out from the street and Gibbs now changed his thoughts on whether Ziva was still disarmed.

"I think they're that way." Mustang said, pointing in the direction of the fighting and Gibbs gave him a nod.

"Alright, let's go." They all moved around the corner, guns held directly in front of them now. Mustang pulled his gloves on tighter. The sight that greeted him was something from his worst nightmares.

"EDWARD!"

* * *

The dust had finally settled and Edward was now positive Moore had taken the bait and followed them down the street. Motioning to Ziva, they cautiously made their way to where the two injured men were lying under the hastily constructed shelters Ed had transmuted. They pulled each man clear of the structures and tucked them in the alleyway closest to them. Both men were still alive and their wounds weren't as horrific as Edward had feared. They'd lose some functionality in their hands and they'd scar from the burn marks but he doubted they'd have to amputated. Ziva relieved Champion of his second weapon and Edward checked but Holt didn't have any more on him.

"You good?" He asked as Ziva checked the gun in her hands over. Removing the magazine, she checked how many bullets were in it before sliding it back in place.

"I'm good." She said. "Now we wait?" She asked and Ed nodded. Moore would likely realise they'd tricked him and would come barreling around that corner, ready to kill. The two of them stood with their backs to each other, covering each direction Moore could take. Ed was the one to spot him first, five minutes later, and pushed Ziva out of the way of the boulder Moore launched at them.

Ziva immediately moved into action, firing a shot that Moore ultimately dodged but gave Ed enough time to send his own attack. Crackling energy raced up along the street and Moore used the stone to demolish the stone hand Ed had tried to squash him with. Moore was moving strangely and now that Ed was up closer to him, he could see Moore never figured out the healing properties of the stone. His left arm was in a filthy cast and Edward almost mistook the bandages that wrapped the man's shoulder as part of his brown jacket. His cheek was swollen, thanks to the busted bone underneath. Ed observed his limited movements and realised Ducky had been correct. Moore could barely bend his right arm at the elbow and the left arm was good only as a club.

Ziva fired another bullet before diving for cover as Moore sent half a dozen smaller boulders flying at her. Ed blocked them and sent a retaliating attack that Moore destroyed in a flash of red. The fight continued in this fashion for a few more minutes. Ed was desperately trying to get closer to Moore, wanting engage the man in hand-to-hand so he could him of the remaining stones but Moore wasn't making it easy.

Ziva was sticking as close as she could to Ed as he slowly inched his way closer so she could provide timely shots to give Ed the opportunity to get a bit closer. Ed was unwilling to let Ziva get too far from him as well, in case the female NCIS agent needed some cover. Ed clapped and launched a series of daggers at Moore but they only managed to nick him. Ed thought he heard the sounds of cars pulling up behind him but was distracted by Moore trying to squash him between two slabs of stone that Edward merely destroyed using Scar's technique.

Ziva fired another round and Moore growled at her. Before Edward could react, Moore had sent a single, deadly spike for Ziva. The Israeli woman froze and Edward didn't bother thinking; he just  _moved_. One moment he was three or so feet away from and the next moment he was directly in front of her, staring Moore down with a horrific pain lancing down his left arm. He heard someone who sounded suspiciously like Mustang scream his name as he felt sticky warmth run down his arm. He could hear Ziva behind him gasp him name and he saw Moore's triumphant grin. Then he looked down to see what the cause of this newest pain was. His eyes widened as he took in the sight.

The spike Moore had sent to kill Ziva was embedded in his left shoulder and protruding from his back, glistening morbidly with his blood.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Edward and Mustang find themselves back in another dimension but this time they're in a new city with new people and facing another rogue alchemist, only this one is out for their blood. With Truth not being involved, they must figure out how to take down the alchemist and get home. New friends and old come together to help them but will it be enough?

Edward watched in an almost detached way as bursts of fire danced its way across his vision. His shoulder was now a roaring ache and the image that was burned into his mind was Moore's smug-ass grin. The fact that Moore was now dodging flames left, right and centre, unable to even get one attack almost made up for the spike that protruded out of his shoulder blade but Ed was still  _pissed_. He could feel Ziva move to stand in front of him and her warm, brown eyes were filled with concern and guilt.

"Edward, you're gonna be okay." She was assuring him and his mind chose that moment to snap back into action. He hadn't even realised how much he'd been blocking out as a wall of noise hit him. He could hear gunshots being fired, the snap of Mustang's fingers, the roar of his fire and the cursing from Moore.

"I'm okay, Miss Ziva. Don't worry about me." He said, gritting his teeth as he clapped and destroyed part of the spike before yanking the rest of it out of his shoulder. Ziva looked horrified but he pulled her to stand next to him as he watched Moore's frantic attempts to dodge Mustang and the bullets. He waited for the perfect opportunity before hoisting the spike back, like a bloody javelin, and launching it flat across the street where it immediately hit its target; the wound Ed's dagger had made. The noise Moore made was completely inhuman as he dropped to the ground. The bullets and fire stopped and Ed could see everyone looking at him from the corner of his eyes. "Mustang, grab a set of handcuffs." He said as he stomped over to where Moore had fallen into a heap.

"Nice to see something as little as a spike going through your body didn't stop you." Mustang commented dryly as he stood next to his subordinate.

"Like it'd be that simple to get rid of me." Ed rolled his eyes before stopping Mustang's approaching the fallen man. "Just hold on a minute." He said, clapping his hands and holding one in the direction of the fallen man, gold eyes glowing electric blue. It lasted only seconds before Ed dropped the array.

"What was that about?" Mustang asked and Ed scowled at him.

"I located where he's keeping the other stones. Unless you'd like to take the risk he's only playing dead?" Ed snarked and Mustang figured he'd let that slide. "He's not a complete moron. He's got one in his left shoe, one tucked in the smallest jean pocket on his right side and three hidden in a small pouch sewn into his jacket on the left hand side about midway down." Ed told him. Mustang found all five stones and handed them over to the blonde who immediately pocketed them with the stone he'd originally taken from Moore. Mustang had just slapped the cuffs on Moore when the man woke up. Said man started ranting as Mustang hauled him to his feet.

"WHAT THE FUCK?! YOU THREW A SPIKE THROUGH MY SHOULDER?! HOW COULD YOU?! JUST WAIT UNTIL I GET OUT OF THESE CUFFS! I'M GONNA-" His rant was cut off with a shrill scream as Edward ripped the spike back out of him.

"If you don't shut your face, I'm gonna ram this down your throat. I've got enough of a headache as it is." He said, waving the spike threateningly. Moore's face was turning bright purple from the repressed rage but he was quiet. "Thank fuck." Ed sighed before wincing as he moved his shoulder. He glared at it before sighing and pulling out a stone. "Sorry." He locked eyes with Mustang, who watched him impassively, as he placed the stone to his shoulder and let the red sparks fly. He grimaced slightly and pulled the stone away before tucking it back into his pocket.

"It's still bleeding." Mustang said, eyes widened a little. Moore's eyes had blown comically wide and his jaw was practically on the ground.

"I didn't heal it all the way. Just my shoulder blade and collarbone from where the spike shattered them. The flesh part of the wound just needs stitches." Ed shrugged before whispering "I didn't want to heal any more than absolutely necessary. I wouldn't waste a soul on that."

"YOU CAN USE A STONE TO HEAL?" Moore screeched and Ed raised the bloody spike.

"What did I say about keeping your mouth shut?" Moore shut it with an audible click. "That's what I thought." Ed muttered. Ziva still looked a little shell-shocked but then again, it wasn't every day you watched someone pull a stone spike out of their shoulder and hurl it at their enemy. He managed to spot and grab the little red stone Moore had dropped after Ed had hit him and pocket it just as the BAU and NCIS teams ran over and began barraging them with questions.

"Ed, are you alright?" Reid asked, fingers already pulling at his top to expose the wound.

"I'm fine. Completely pissed off but fine. I need stitches and some headache tablets but I'm fine." Ed told them, shooing Reid's fingers away. "Are you alright, Miss Ziva?" He asked the curly haired woman.

"Me? I'm fine. Barely a scratch." She looked bewildered that he even asked her.

"Good." Ed nodded. "Can we go? I don't want to look at his face any longer than I have to." Ed asked jabbing a thumb over his shoulder at the shackled Moore.

"Moore or Mustang?" Morgan couldn't help but ask and Ed grinned.

"Well, both, now that you mention it." He smirked. "But, unfortunately, I'm stuck looking at Mustang until we get home." He heaved a massive sigh of hardship that had most of the group grinning. Moore still looked like he was going to explode. Mustang just rolled his eyes at the insults.

"I'm seconding Fullmetal, for the most part. Can we go somewhere we can hold him for the next 40 or so hours?" Mustang asked and Gibbs nodded.

"He's powerless now, right?" He asked and Edward nodded.

"Yup. Unless he manages to get his hands on the stones again." He told Gibbs.

"He can stay in one of our interview rooms. It won't be as comfortable as a jail cell but it's secure and he won't have to be entered into the system." Gibbs told them and both Edward and Mustang seemed happy to hear that. Moore did not.

"Don't look so pissed off." Edward rolled his eyes at their prisoner. "This is better than you deserve." He informed him and Moore snarled.

"I deserve nothing like this. I demand medical attention for my injuries and my immediate release. I've done nothing wrong!" He screeched.

"So, you're definitely delusional." Edward said observably. "You'll get medical treatment after us but you are so not getting released, you complete fucking nutbag. You tried to kill us!"

"You threw a spike through my shoulder!" Moore yelled and Ed rolled his eyes.

"Yeah. 'Cus you tried to  _kill_  us." Edward reminded him and Hotch ended up pulling Edward away from the crazed ex-alchemist.

"Stop arguing with Moore." Hotch said as he led the blonde away.

"But, Hotch, sometimes you gotta argue with a crazy person." Edward whined and Hotch flattened him with an unimpressed stare.

"No. And put that spike down." Hotch ordered, looking at the bloody stone still gripped in Ed's automail hand.

"Rude." He complained but complied, dropping the spike as they headed for the cars. Moore was forced into one of the FBI's SUVs. Literally forced by Mustang and Morgan as the man decided he did not want to go in. Hotch and Gibbs suggested to Ed that he should travel in a separate car, something Ed was fine with. He'd been exposed to enough crazy already. So he joined Ziva, McGee and Gibbs in the sedan while DiNozzo joined Morgan, Hotch and Prentiss in the car with Moore. Everyone else rode in the second SUV. They did hang around long enough for two ambulances to be called and arrive for Champion and Holt but they left as soon as they did.

* * *

 

Gibbs had Ziva debrief during the car ride and she told him everything that had happened from when they'd walked out of the burger joint up to when Edward had gotten injured protecting her. Ed got a little flustered when she thanked him for that. Ed was jumping into the story every now and then to add on a detail from his perspective that Ziva missed when they heard a crash from behind them. They all spun around to see a car had rammed the back SUV into the front one and Hotch had just managed to apply the brakes quickly enough that their sedan wasn't hit but it was a near thing.

The next thing they knew, people were swarming the three cars. Ed's door was yanked open and he was being grabbed roughly by his left arm, causing the newest wound to throb with white hot pain as he was dragged out. The man who had hold of him let go pretty quick after Ed shattered his knee cap with a well-placed kick from his left foot. A gun was being held on Gibbs, who hadn't been pulled out of the car, but Ed clapped and caused that problem to disappear in the same way he'd taken care of Champion and Holt. Ziva had taken down her attacker with ease and both she and McGee took care of the one who went after the youngest NCIS team member. Ed turned back to face the other two cars and was glad to see everyone wrapping up with their own fights. When the last person was taken down, Ed jogged over with the NCIS team to see how everyone was.

They'd all come out of it with small cuts and bruises. The two SUV's were badly damaged, especially the second SUV, but no one was seriously hurt. Despite there being nearly as many attackers as there were agents and alchemists, the bad guys took a few hits. Ed counted at least four unconscious or badly hurt men on the ground, not including the two he'd taken down, and not a single one of them was shot. The only downside to this whole thing was that Moore managed to escape during the mess, leaving behind the handcuffs Mustang had put on him. Edward had punched the SUV with his automail after hearing that. Morgan was already on the phone to Garcia who, after a minor freak-out and numerous assurances from everyone, was hacking her way through every camera she could find. One of her new programs was helping her track Moore but she, in her own words, was cranky enough that he'd hurt her family and escaped that she could search through the footage just as quickly.

They were forced to call more ambulances and some local police to help them with their attackers, most of whom were still out cold. Ed didn't feel any guilt about using his automail or alchemy against the two he had, especially after the first thing they upon spotting him was yell at him, worsening his headache. He was tempted to alchemically sew their mouths shut but Mustang held him back. The police officers dealt with getting tow trucks out to remove the SUV's, dealt with the traffic and arrested those who weren't deemed injured enough for an ambulance trip or who had refused medical aid. Once the tow trucks had cleared out, two new SUV's were dropped off by the local FBI field office. Gibbs greeted one man, Fornell, like an old friend, even though the two of them seemed to bitch at each other. Edward had offered to track Moore but that idea had been vetoed because of his injuries, fatigue and the fact there were civilians around. So they all piled back into the cars, the two extra FBI agents got lifts as well, and they were on their way to NCIS once again.

"I can't believe Moore managed to escape. Seriously; how did he even manage that?" Ziva asked and Ed groaned.

"You remember how Holt told us Moore had 'God-given talents' and whatever bullshit he verbally spewed?" Ed asked and Ziva gave him a nod. "He's probably convinced all of those people that he's some sort of God and that if they helped him, he'd make them rich or whatever. Someone was probably watching our whole fight and alerted the others when Moore was arrested and they all rescued him so they'd be rewarded." Ed slumped in his seat. "So now we've got a whole group of dickheads to deal with as well as Moore. At least we might have one thing going for us." Ed smirked a little. "I've still got all of his stones from the fight."

"How is that anything other than a definite thing going for us?" McGee asked and Ed grimaced as he pulled his shoulder trying to sit up.

"Well, if Moore was smart about it, he would've hidden a stone or two in a separate place rather than keeping all of them on his person. Harding did the same thing so it stands to reason that Moore would too." Ed explained. "Actually, this cult following he's got might work more in our favour on this. If Moore has really convinced them he's God, he wouldn't want to leave stones lying around in case someone finds them and uses them. Granted, the chances of someone from this dimension being able to transmute, stone or no stone, is practically impossible. Still, if he's paranoid enough, hopefully that means I now have all of the stones." Ed rambled a little but his point was valid.

"That would mean that he'd come after you." Gibbs pointed out and Ed shrugged far too nonchalantly for it to be an act.

"Let him. Next time he comes at me, I'm knocking the fucker out." Ed growled before catching glimpses of the faces the three other occupants of the car exchanged. "What? His voice was pissing me off." He said defensively and Ziva gave him a calming pet on the arm. Ed grumbled but didn't push her away so she counted that as a win.

* * *

 

They made it through the security check point and Ed was immediately escorted to see Ducky, along with Ziva who complained a lot less than Ed did, to absolutely no ones surprise. Ed did insist Ziva get looked at first and she was cleared by the good doctor with only minor scrapes and bruises. Ducky's cheery demeanour disappeared almost entirely when he saw the state of Ed's shoulder.

"Edward, you should be in a hospital for this kind of injury! The flesh wound aside, your shoulder blade and collarbone will need surgery to fix!" Ducky exclaimed and Ed gave him a grin.

"Yeah, I used a stone to heal the bones up. I just need a couple of stitches and I'll be right." Ed told him before the doctor could start calling in ambulances or whoever he was thinking.

"A couple of stitches? Edward, you'll need at least a dozen and maybe some internally." He told him and Ed shrugged.

"If you don't wanna do it, Doc, that's fine. Just give me the supplies I need and I can do it myself. Well, I'll make Mustang stitch my back up. Our patch up job will hold well enough until we get to Amestris and I can make Havoc do them properly." Ed told him and Ducky wanted to hit him.

"You shouldn't take such injuries so lightly, my boy." Ducky wagged a finger in his face before he sighed. "I can only give you a local anesthetic." He warned and Ed shrugged.

"I've had worse injuries patched up with no pain relief. I'll be fine." Ed assured him and Ducky wished he didn't believe what Ed had just said. Ducky prepared the pain relief while Ziva watched on, pretending not to be anxious. Ed didn't flinch when the drugs were administered and after a minute, confirmed he couldn't feel anything. Ducky got to work.

"I'll admit to being morbidly curious." Ducky said after a few moments. Ed raised a brow at him. "What were those injuries you mentioned?" He asked and Ed huffed.

"Well, the main one would be my automail. It's gotta be attached while the recipient is still awake and no pain relief can be given. That's the only way to certain the ports are installed correctly and the nerve connections work. And I got them done when I was 11." He told them. "Then a few months before the fight with Father, I fought an alchemist who had a stone. Actually, he had two but I didn't know so when I knocked the first one out of his hand and he pulled out the second one, I was screwed. He made a mine shaft collapse underneath me and two of his goons. When I came too, I had a metal rod going through my side. I freed the two goons, they yanked the rod out and I sacrificed some of my life span to healing the wound enough for them to get me to a doctor who'd take me in off the books. That doctor had run out of pain meds so I had to get the wound fixed without them." Ed told them and both looked at him like they couldn't believe it.

"How are you still alive?" Ziva asked and Ed laughed while Ducky chided her.

"Fuck knows. Probably just a shit ton of dumb luck." He told her just as the doors to Autopsy opened to permit Mustang, Gibbs and Hotch.

"What's this about dumb luck?" Mustang asked as he walked to stand behind Doctor Mallard and check the injury for himself.

"My still being alive." Ed told him and Mustang made an 'ah' of understanding before nodding. "So what's the plan? I doubt you two came down here to watch me get stitched up." He said, looking at the two agents. "He gets some sort of sick amusement out of watching me squirm." Ed added and Mustang rolled his eyes as Ducky finished the entrance wound and moved around to stitch up the exit wound.

"You're not squirming now." Mustang pointed out and Edward gave him a look.

"I was given a local. I'm good." Ed deadpanned before turning to the agents. "So? Plan?" He prompted and the agents shared a look.

"We're waiting for Garcia's program and rather impressive rage-induced searching to find where Moore is hiding now, or at least the area he was last seen on a camera is, before we head out to confront him again. Once there, we were hoping you'd be willing to use that tracking array of yours and give us an estimate of how many people are in the building or area and whether Moore is definitely there. Assuming the information you give us is that Moore is in the building, our teams will split into two or three groups and enter the building. We'll incapacitate anyone we come across and take down Moore. You," Hotch pointed at Ed, "will be staying outside so that Moore can't get a hold of those stones again." Ed didn't look impressed and opened his mouth to protest.

"You told us that you and the Brigadier-General were the only ones who could take Moore done  _while_  he was using the stones. He doesn't have them anymore and we won't risk you getting any more injuries." Gibbs' no-nonsense tone left room for little argument. That didn't mean Ed didn't try.

"Except, we don't know I have all of the stones he brought here. I think I do. I think he was too paranoid to hide any and he was too confident he could take us down to think he'd need to but I could be wrong. It's rare but it does happen." Ed argued and Mustang nodded.

"Fullmetal is right. We don't know for certain he doesn't have an extra stone hidden away. So how about we compromise?" Mustang asked and the two agents looked interested. "How close do you have to be to be able to sense a stone with your array?" Mustang asked and Ed contemplated.

"If the wielder is literally using it to attack when my tracking array is active, I can sense it at whatever distance my array covers. But if it's not in use, I have to be within a metre or so of the person to find the stones on them and looking for the stones." Ed told him and Ziva looked a little confused.

"How come it has to be in use for you to be able to sense it over a long distance?" She asked and Ed looked rather happy about the question.

"My tracking array tracks active alchemic energy. Every alchemist has energy stored in them and it is constantly active. The stones however are simply tools. While they contain alchemic energy, to a point, it is inactive unless the wielder is using it. If I'm close and actively looking for the stones, I'll see them." Ed explained to her. Mustang cleared his throat and Ziva and Ed looked at him; Ziva somewhat apologetic, Edward not so much.

"So you'd have to be up close to Moore if he isn't using the stone to know if he has one?" Edward nodded. Mustang turned to the two male agents. "So how about we use Fullmetal as bait and trick Moore?" Ed looked very interested in this plan. Hotch, Gibbs, Ziva and Ducky weren't looking as keen.

"What you got in mind, Mustang?" Ed asked. Ducky finished the last stitch and was now covering them with a gauze pad and some tape so his clothes didn't catch on the stitches.

"I was thinking that we could, like the agents said, have you scan the building to see if Moore is in there. If he is, we send you in by yourself. You can handle anyone who comes at you easily so we don't have to worry about that. Moore will have likely surrounded himself with the strongest fighters in his little cult anyway. I imagine he will have ordered them to pin you down and grab the stones back so he can take care of you and me himself. We come in while his goons are holding you down and leaving him exposed. If he has a stone, he will use it to try and stop us. If he does, I can engage him in a fight while you get yourself loose and can assist me. If he doesn't, he'll be easy to take down." Mustang said and Ed could only see one small flaw in the plan. He wasn't the only one.

"What if Moore gets those stones before we get up there?" Gibbs asked and Ed came up with a solution.

"I might have an idea but I'll need to work on it. I think Miss Abby might be able to help me the best." Ed said and Gibbs and Hotch exchanged a look.

"If your idea works, we'll go with Mustang's plan but only if you two agree to stand back if Moore doesn't have a stone and let us handle it." Hotch said and Ed opened his mouth but Hotch held up a hand. "I know you are more than capable of looking after yourself but you are already injured enough that I shouldn't even be letting you leave this building. I don't want you getting hurt worse than you are because, believe it or not, we do care about you Ed. Also, if Garcia found out you got hurt worse because we let you fight unnecessarily, she'll destroy us through our technology." Ed snorted.

"So you want me to stay out of the fight so you don't risk Miss Penelope's wrath?" He asked, amusement twinkling in his eyes and Hotch nodded.

"That woman isn't called an evil genius for no reason." He told the blonde who started laughing as he pulled his shirt and hoodie back on.

"I'll tell her you said that." Ed told him and Hotch shrugged.

"She'd take it as a compliment." He informed the blonde, who nodded in agreement.

"I know." He hopped down from the table before turning to Ducky. "Thanks for patching me up, Doc. Is Miss Abby in her lab?" Ed asked Gibbs who nodded before giving Ziva a look.

"Come on, Ed. I'll take you up there." She offered and Ed followed her into the elevator.

"Do you know what he's planning?" Gibbs asked Mustang.

"I have an idea but honestly, I could be completely wrong. Fullmetal has this way of making you think you've got him figured out before doing something you'd never have expected." Mustang told them. "His brother is probably the only one who could predict his thoughts and movements with any sort of confidence."

"So you don't know if it's going to work?" Gibbs asked but Mustang shook his head.

"I would be very, very surprised if whatever idea Fullmetal has come up with isn't successful." Mustang told them honestly. "Shall we head back upstairs to see how Miss Garcia is going?" He asked. They said their goodbyes to Ducky before doing just that.

* * *

Ed and Abby both came up from her lab a few hours later, massive grins on their faces. Ziva had rejoined the other agents and Mustang in the office area after leaving Ed with the forensic scientist. Mustang and Gibbs both had the same thought; their smiles meant something really, really good had happened or they'd set something on fire.

"What'd you do?" DiNozzo asked, almost suspiciously. Apparently, Mustang and Gibbs weren't the only ones who'd had the same thought.

"I don't appreciate the accusing tone of your voice." Abby sniffed at him and DiNozzo spread his hands in a 'can you blame me?' gesture. Ed shook his head before stopping in front of Mustang and holding his closed fist out. Mustang looked bemused and held out a palm to grab whatever Ed was trying to give him. Half a dozen small, glittering red stones fell onto his palm.

"You're giving me the Philosopher's Stones?" He asked as he picked one up and looked at it.

"Try and use it." Ed urged, taking a couple of steps back. His action made everyone shuffle back a little.

"Okay..." Mustang said preparing to snap his fingers. Ed rolled his eyes. "What?" Mustang asked him, rather snappishly.

"It's a stone and you're gonna use your flame alchemy?" He asked, raising a brow unimpressed. Mustang rolled his eyes but lowered his hand. He looked around the office for inspiration before landing on a piece of paper on DiNozzo's desk. He held the stone over it and thought about the array he wanted to use. The red stone flashed before Mustang yelped and dropped it, shooting a very angry glare at Ed who was grinning and high-fiving Abby. "It worked!" He exclaimed while Mustang rubbed his smarting hand.

"What worked?" Mustang growled and Ed rolled his eyes at the attitude before he picked up the dropped stone and gestured to Mustang to give him the rest. He did but tapped his foot impatiently for an answer. The other around them looked suitably curious.

"I wanted to make false stones." Ed said, holding the stones in his palm for everyone to see. "Here, look. This is one of Moore's." He placed his stones on the desk next to him before fishing one out of his pocket and holding it up in comparison to one of his.

"They look identical." Reid commented. Ed looked very pleased with that comment.

"They're supposed too." He said, handing the two stones over to Reid so he could look at them closer. "Like Mustang so elegantly demonstrated," he ignored the growl coming from said person, "you can use them but they shock you. Not enough to hurt; more like a static electric shock." He explained as Reid handed the two stones back.

"So why did you have me use one?" Mustang asked, crossing his arms in front of his chest.

"Honestly? Thought your reaction would be hilarious. I was right." Ed told him and a few of the agents laughed. "Also, needed someone who wasn't me to test them just in case they didn't work right. You are the only other alchemist here." Ed pointed out. Hotch could see the fight coming a mile away so he decided to stop it in its tracks.

"How did you make them?" Hotch asked and Ed's attention immediately turned to him, the snarl on his face disappearing as his focus was now not on fighting.

"Well, Miss Abby helped a lot." He said, shooting the scientist a grin as she flushed a little at the comment. "I won't get into the scientific side of it since really only two of you would be able to appreciate it but we basically got the ingredients I needed to make a false stone. Abby had a look at one of Moore's under her microscope and ran a sample through the mass-spec so we could get as close to the real one as we could without, ya know, the hundreds of human sacrifices."

"So why does it zap someone when they use it?" Morgan asked.

"Actually, Miss Abby made an off-hand comment that gave me the idea." He told them. "While we were trying to figure out what ingredients we needed, Miss Abby said something about this reminding her of when she used to make pranks to use on her brother, Luca, and how one of them emitted a small zap when her brother picked up something she'd attached it too. It got me thinking. These stones were only going to look realistic but I could tell which ones were Moore's because I could feel the alchemic energy lying dormant in them. I didn't know if it was because I'm me or if any competent alchemist could sense it so I decided better safe than sorry. While I manipulated the ingredients, I added some of my own alchemic energy to it so it'd be stored in there. I then added a tiny array that would be triggered by anyone using alchemic energy while holding the stone so they'd get zapped. That way they looked like Moore's and he'd be able to sense the energy inside, if he could always do that." Ed explained as best he could.

"So you created a fake stone that also acts as a storage device for alchemic energy that will zap anyone who uses it?" Prentiss summed up and Ed nodded.

"Yup. If someone other than me uses it, they'll get zapped. I know how to dismantle the array, after all." Ed told her.

"You managed to create something to store your alchemic energy in?" Mustang asked and Ed rolled his eyes.

"Yes, obviously." He said. "It took a few goes and some minor explosions but I got it figured out now." He shrugged.

"'Minor explosions'?" Gibbs asked, looking directly at Abby.

"Yup. Nothing big enough to leave more than a scorch mark and Ed fixed it up right away." She told him cheerily, feigning ignorance to his less-than-happy demeanour.

"So why did you decide to create booby-trapped stones anyway?" JJ was the one to speak up and their attention was directed to her.

"Mustang came up with a half-way decent plan that only had one major flaw in it." Ed told her. "We're using me as bait but Gibbs pointed out the flaw I'd also noticed. What if Moore manages to get the real stones off of me? So I came up with the idea of fake stones. I'd put them in the same pocket Moore saw me put his so if he does manage to take them off me, he'd think they're his." JJ nodded.

"So what are you going to do with Moore's ones than?" She asked and Ed seemed to hesitate slightly before answering.

"I was actually going to ask you or Doctor Reid to hold onto them for me." He said and saw more than a couple of shocked looks. "I have to take them back to Amestris. The array to destroy them uses too much alchemic energy for me to risk it here. I can't leave them here or in the cars just in case something bad happens and I need to use one ASAP. I obviously can't have them on me and the person Moore would assume to have them, other than me, is Mustang. So whichever one of you is less likely to be in the fight and is willing to hold onto them is my first choice." He explained and both JJ and Reid realised exactly how much he trusted them. None of the others seemed particularly surprised by this revelation.

"I'll take them, if you'd like?" Reid offered and Ed flashed him a bright grin before pulling out a small bag with draw strings. He put six stones in there and tightened it before placing it on the table, clapping his hands and placing one over it. Blue energy crackled before he pulled it away. The bag didn't look any different when he handed it to Reid.

"I sealed it alchemically. No one will be able to open it without unsealing it with the right array." Ed explained when Reid gave him a curious look. Reid gave an 'ah' of understanding before tucking the bag in one of his pockets. Ed shoved his own stones in the pocket he'd hidden Moores in.

"I gotta head back down to the lab. I have other cases I need to get back to." Abby said, a little mournfully.

"Thanks for all your help, Miss Abby." Ed gave her a bright smile which she returned before waving goodbye to the room and heading back down to her labs.

"So now all we have to do is wait for Garcia to find out where Moore might be hiding. I doubt it'll take too much longer." Hotch told them and he was right. Fifteen minutes after Abby had gone back to her lab, Garcia came up from the Cyber Unit she had taken over.

"I know where he is!" She called as she shuffle-jogged over, moving as quick as her heels would let her. She stopped at Ziva's desk and, with permission from said agent, used her computer to call up security camera footage. "I found this camera belonging to a self-storage unit complex. As you can see, it overlooks the front entrance and the other side of the street." She explained as she made her way over to where Ed, Mustang and Morgan all stood before playing the footage. It showed Moore being helped into a building across the street and to the left of the storage unit facility.

"Garcia, do you know what that building is?" Hotch asked and Garcia looked at him like he was an idiot.

"Of course I do, bossman. I sent the blueprints to your tablets. From what I can tell, it used to be a factory before being bought and converted into office spaces for a company that went belly-up within a year. It's on the market and has been for the last two years. It's completely abandoned and there's no security." She told them while the BAU pulled out their tablets, with the exception of Reid, and showed their tabletless neighbour the building plans.

"Okay." Gibbs said once they'd finished studying the plans. "When do we want to do this?" He asked, looking mainly at Ed and Mustang.

"How do you guys feel about a midnight raid? They'll have started to relax by then and there'll be less civilians around." Mustang suggested and everyone exchanged glance before they came to an agreement.

"Alright. Let's head up to the conference room and plan this out properly. We'll leave here an hour before midnight." Gibbs ordered and everyone started moving. Garcia decided she would join them up there once she'd grabbed her laptop so she headed back to her little lair to grab it.

"Can we get some food while we do this? I missed lunch." Ed asked and Mustang rolled his eyes while everyone else laughed a little. Hotch agreed to order in some food. He figured it was the FBI's turn to foot the bill for Edward's near insatiable appetite.


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Edward and Mustang find themselves back in another dimension but this time they're in a new city with new people and facing another rogue alchemist, only this one is out for their blood. With Truth not being involved, they must figure out how to take down the alchemist and get home. New friends and old come together to help them but will it be enough?

Ed was listening to all of the adults around him while he happily downed his third burger. They had tablets and papers strewn across the desk while they discussed the plan of attack for later that night. Ed was half-listening while he ate and thought about much more interesting things. Like punching Moore in his twice-injured shoulder. If anyone deserved that, it'd be that prick for having his goons attack their cars. He scowled as he took another bite of his burger. He was questioning the intelligence of Americans as whole. He had two very separate groups to collect data from; the agents and those who were following Moore. He followed this train of thought when he had an interesting idea. Mustang happened to look over and see Ed pause as he does when he's trying to think his way through something.

"You got anything to suggest, Fullmetal?" He asked and smirked when Ed shushed him before resuming his eating. The agents were looking at Mustang questioningly. "Give him a minute. Now where were we?" He asked. There was a moments silence before the chatter resumed. Ed continued thinking as he now started picking at the leftover fries.

"What if we go to the hospital and talk to Champion or Holt? We should probably confirm that that's where Moore is actually hiding out before we go in guns blazing." Edward interjected suddenly, interrupting DiNozzo, looking up from his fries. "Holt would probably be the one we should talk to first." Ed suggested.

"Why?" Gibbs asked and Ed shrugged as he shoved more fries into his mouth.

"Well, he seems convinced Moore is some sort of God, or has been given God-like powers at the very least, so he's probably more likely to tell the truth out of the two of them when we tell him Moore is nothing of the sort. Also, I'm hoping he wasn't in complete shock when I blew up his gun and remembers I was the one who saved him from the debris and from my second fight with Moore." Edward told him.

"So you want to exploit any feelings of gratitude or whatnot the man might have towards you so you can find Moore?" McGee asked and Ed gave him a bored look.

"Well, yeah. Besides, it's equivalent exchange. I saved his life. If he tells me what I want to know, we're even." Ed told him and McGee could see where Ed was coming from, even if it did make him a bit unnerved. Of course he was no stranger to what Ed was suggesting but people normally didn't admit it quite as bluntly as Ed did. He had to admit that it was a refreshing change; having someone around who was honest, even brutally so.

"What are you gonna do if he doesn't remember or believes you?" Morgan asked and Ed turned his gold eyes onto him.

"If he doesn't remember, fine. Can't hold that against him. If he doesn't believe me? I'll prove it." He told him and Morgan nodded like that was the answer he expected.

"Anyone got any problems with that idea?" Mustang asked and got no complaints. "Then I suggest two of you accompany Fullmetal to whatever hospital Holt is in and get the answers we need so we can plan accordingly." He said and Ed rolled his eyes.

"You do realise you're in charge of literally one person in this room and I barely count since your orders are usually dumb and my plans work a lot better?" Ed asked and at least two of the agents snorted.

"Your plans always somehow involve buildings collapsing or getting blown up. My orders would prevent those things, were you to actually listen." Mustang snipped back.

"Yeah, but where's the fun in that?" Ed heaved a sigh. "Besides, do you realise how much more likely it is for people to just surrender to me instead of being dumb and resisting arrest now that my enjoyment of dropping buildings onto stupid people is well-known and highly exaggerated?" Ed asked, mildly curious. Al and him had done the math when they realised they weren't fighting people as often. He was kinda curious to know if Mustang had even noticed. Hotch didn't give him the chance to find out.

"Morgan, Reid, take Ed with you to the hospital Holt is in. Call as soon as you get the answers we need." Hotch ordered and Ed snatched up a bag of fries before following the two men out of the room eagerly.

* * *

 

They headed for one of the replacement SUVs and climbed in, Ed still working on his fries. Morgan made a quick call to Garcia, which had Ed leaning over the centre console to say hello to her while Morgan tried to get her to focus on his question. Ed eventually rolled his eyes and asked Garcia himself, who promptly gave the answer, before returning to their conversation and saying goodbye a couple of minutes later. Morgan mumbled something about favouritism while Ed and Reid shared a grin and engaged in their own conversation about some of the books Reid was reading currently. Ed swore he heard Morgan sigh with relief when they turned up at the hospital.

It didn't take them long to get to the entrance and talk to one of the nurses there. Ed rolled his eyes when he realised Morgan was flirting with the rather pretty nurse. His eyes locked with Reid and he pretended to gag behind Morgan's back, making the other man and the nurse Morgan was talking to laugh. Ed did his best to look as innocent as he could when Morgan turned around to glare at him. The nurse ended up giving them Holt's room number and paged the doctor assigned to him so they could meet him there.

"Agent Morgan and Reid?" A youngish man in a white coat asked as they approached the room the nurse gave them. Both agents nodded. The man held his hand out. "Doctor Williams. I'm Mr Holt's primary doctor." He introduced himself, shaking their hands in turn. He looked at Edward, who was a couple of steps behind the agents.

"Edward." He said, giving the man a wave. The doctor looked confused but nodded back politely.

"Mr Holt has suffered major damage to his hands, as you can imagine. He has burns ranging from first to third degree from his fingers up to his elbows. His hand bones were practically shattered and we had to amputate four of his fingers because of the severity of the damage. He's also suffered nerve damage and it's unlikely he'll ever have half the mobility he used to in either hand. He's very lucky we didn't have to amputate either hand." Doctor Williams told them and Ed winced a little guiltily. He didn't want either man to suffer like that; he just wanted them out of the fight.

"Can we speak to him?" Morgan asked and Doctor Williams sighed a little.

"You can have five minutes. He needs to rest and we need to keep his stress levels down as best we can." The doctor told them and they nodded their thanks before heading into the room. Holt was propped up on the bed, both hands heavily bandaged with lighter bandages covering his forearms. He also had a few bruises and minor cuts littering his face and neck that Ed assumed came from his collapse and/or the falling debris Edward hadn't been quick enough to shield them from.

"What do you want?" Holt asked and Ed was slightly confused. He didn't sound angry or scared. He just sounded resigned, maybe a little wary.

"We'd like you to confirm where Moore is hiding out. If we show you pictures of the building he's been spotted heading into, would you confirm if he's likely to still be there?" Edward asked, surprising the two agents with his manners. Holt looked at him.

"You are the reason I've lost four of my fingers and will be unlikely to even lift a fork to eat off of. Why would I help you?" Holt asked and Ed was once again taken aback by the lack of venom in his voice.

"I may have injured you but you are the reason you got injured. I didn't force you to join Moore or hold a gun on me and Agent David. Unless Moore blackmailed you, you joining him was your fault and you are the one who put me in the position where I had to disable your weapons in the only way I could to protect myself and my friend. I'm the cause of your injuries but I'm not the one to blame for them." Edward told him, stone-faced. Holt looked at him for a moment before bowing his head slightly.

"Moore didn't hold anything over my head. He didn't threaten me or my loved ones. He offered me gold and jewels, making them appear right before eyes in a flash of red. I turned them down when I saw his power. I asked him if God had given it to him and he said yes. He told me God had chosen him specifically to do His work. I asked him what that work was and he told me there were two people in this city that needed to be killed. He told me the two of you had committed numerous crimes so horrendous he refused to tell me so I would still be able to sleep at night. That God had chosen him because you had murdered his brother for no reason." Holt looked up at Edward than. "I followed him blindly. I believed what he said but you were the one to shield me and Joshua from the building's collapse. You were the one to move me and him out of harms way before Moore found you. I watched that fight. I saw you use powers similar to his and I saw you take that hit meant for the woman with you. I've spent the time I've been awake asking myself why someone who was so horrible, someone who committed crimes Moore had sworn were so atrocious he said they'd give me nightmares, why someone like that would protect an innocent woman or save two men who'd been trying to kill him?"

"And what did you realise?" Reid asked, not being able to help himself. Holt's eyes snapped to him before finding Edward again.

"Moore played me. He used my belief in God against me and I almost killed a child and a federal agent on nothing more than his word. I don't know how he got his powers but they certainly were no gift from my God." Holt told him before his eyes became begging. "I know I don't deserve it but I beg of you to forgive me. I was blinded and I truly regret my actions. I am sorry for any hurt I have caused you or the agent you were with." Ed blinked stupidly at him for a moment. He hadn't quite expected this conversation to go how it did.

"You tell us the truth about where Moore is hiding and how many people he's got doing his bidding and we'll call it even, okay?" Ed said and Holt blinked at him.

"That's all you ask?" He didn't sound like he believed it.

"Well, yeah." Ed shrugged. "I mean, you said sorry and you admitted to your mistake and I did blow your gun up in your face. Sorry about that, by the way. I didn't mean for your injuries to be so severe. The gun powder in your bullets must be more potent than the ones back home." Ed grimaced as his eyes fell to the mans bandaged hands. "So, yeah, just tell us that info and we're good." Holt stared at him for a second before agreeing. Morgan stepped forward with his tablet.

"This is the building a camera spotted him going into about four hours ago. We know he's hurt but is he likely to stay here or do you think he'll leave to find medical treatment?" Morgan asked, tilting the tablet so Holt could see.

"Moore had someone who was a doctor working with him. He was one of the first recruits after Joshua and myself. Moore will stay in that building until he's ready to go after you again." Holt looked at Edward. "He is dead-set on taking you and the other man out." Ed sighed.

"Yeah, well, I don't really blame him. He wasn't lying when he said we killed his brother." Ed admitted, looking away from the group.

"Three months ago, Moore's brother, Harding, came to New York City and started killing random people for no reason other than they bore a resemblance to people he'd felt wronged him. Edward and his boss helped us find and capture him as they were familiar with the man and his weapon of choice. Unfortunately, Edward and Mustang were forced to used fatal force when Harding went crazy. The only person to blame for Harding's death was Harding himself." Morgan explained before Holt could get the wrong idea, placing a firm hand on Edward's left upper arm and squeezing it tightly. He didn't let go until Ed looked back up at him and nodded. Holt was watching him carefully before he looked back at Morgan.

"Before we kidnapped Edward and the female officer, Moore had 27 people, including myself and Joshua, willing to help him. I am uncertain if any more joined his cause, for lack of a better word. I do know a couple of people were asked to go and recruit for him." Holt answered their second question without more prompting.

"We took down and arrested six people when they attacked our cars to get Moore back." Reid said. "That's eight less, including you and Champion, so we're looking at roughly twenty people in that building." He looked at Ed. "Do you think you'll be able to handle that many?" He asked, brow furrowed in concern.

"Assuming they aren't all sleeping in the one area and don't all rush me, then yeah, I'll be fine. I'm betting on some of them giving up instead of fighting me as well so that would help." Edward told him, sounding completely chill about the idea of going up against so many people.

"They aren't." Holt said, drawing attention back to himself. "Sleeping in the one area. Moore's placed them in groups of three-five people on each level. One person from each group is supposed to run and warn the next group of any intruders. The remaining members of the group are supposed to hold the intruders back for as long as they can." Holt told them and Edward frowned.

"Let me guess; he has the strongest or most capable fighters near him, doesn't he?" Ed asked, confirming his and Mustang's theory and Holt nodded. "Cowardly bastard." He muttered to himself. Reid seemed to think of something, head turning to look at Holt quickly.

"Did you see Moore hide anything? Maybe something that looked like a small ruby?" He asked and Holt thought before shaking his head.

"No. I know what you're referring to but I can't say I've seen him hide anything. He was always guarding his pockets though." He offered and Ed nodded.

"Yeah, I've already taken all of the stones he had on his person. Well, at least we can be a little more certain I was right about his paranoia making it so he wouldn't stash one." Ed sighed. It still wasn't a confirmation though. Holt wouldn't have been around Moore 24/7 so it is still slightly possible he was wrong. "You two got any more questions?" He asked, looking at each agent.

"No, I think we're good." Morgan said as Reid nodded. "Thank you for your co-operation, Mr Holt." He said, nodding to the man once before heading out of the door. Reid followed him and Ed was close behind but he hesitated for a moment and turned back to Holt.

"Thanks for helping us. I forgive you for your part." He said before dashing after the others, not giving the bed-ridden man a chance to reply. No one said a word to him and they walked past Doctor Williams on their way out. Morgan called a thank you out to the man, who nodded and looked relieved he didn't have to go chase them out. They piled back into their car and Reid called Hotch as soon as they'd left the hospital grounds to tell him what they'd learnt.

* * *

The drive back was quiet. Ed spent most of his time staring out the window, watching the city flash by as they weaved in and out of traffic. Once Reid was off the phone, after assuring Hotch they were heading straight back, the car fell into an easy silence. Morgan put the radio on and Ed half listened to the odd music and before he knew it, they were heading through the security check point at NCIS. Soon after that, they were parked, in the elevator then heading for the conference room where they'd left their teammates.

"There goes our peace and quiet." Was the first thing Ed heard as soon as they walked though the door. Naturally, it was Mustang who said it.

"Bitch, I will stab you." Ed said, flipping him off as he flopped back into his original chair.

"Like you could reach high enough for it to matter." Mustang bantered back and, to his surprise, Ed just rolled his eyes at the short joke.

"Even if that were true, I could stab you in the femoral artery. Or the knee cap." Ed pointed out lazily.

"Boys." JJ said, sounding like a mum reprimanding her children.

"Yes, Miss JJ?" Ed asked, feigning innocence. Mustang rolled his eyes at his act.

"Threaten each other later." She told him and he nodded, poking his tongue out at Mustang before his eyes saw a leftover bag of fries. He grabbed them, realised they were cold before shrugging and eating them anyway. Prentiss and JJ looked mildly offended that he did.

"So what did you lot plot while we were gone?" Ed asked, eyes glinting curiously.

"Are you sure you still want to go in alone? You don't want even Mustang as back up?" Hotch asked and Ed looked betrayed.

"That's your idea of back up? Why don't you just let me take a ten-year-old? They'll be in better fighting shape." Ed grouched.

"Hey!" Mustang sounded offended. Ed didn't seem to care.

"At least you'd have someone who knows alchemy at your back." Rossi pointed out and Edward looked between the three most senior agents.

"You're not going to give me a choice, are you?" He realised and they all nodded.

"Yeah, pretty much. When Reid told us how many you could potentially be fighting, we decided Mustang was going with you." Hotch told him and Ed sighed dramatically.

"Fine! But I'm agreeing under protest!" Ed told him, pointing a finger at their faces.

"Noted." Gibbs said, with a slight smirk. Ed saw the usual smirk on Mustang's face and turned back to the bosses.

"Extreme protest." He muttered, causing most of them to snicker. Even Hotch and Gibbs looked amused while Mustang was doing his best to look betrayed. "So when are we doing this?" He asked.

"We'll leave here in two hours. Once we get to the building, you'll scan it and report where everyone is and we'll go from there." Gibbs told him. Ed nodded.

"So what are we doing until then?" He asked and Gibbs shrugged his shoulders. Ed ate the last of the cold fries before hopping up and heading for the door. "I'm gonna go see Miss Penelope. Come and find me when you're ready to go." He called over his shoulder and slipped out before anyone could stop him.

"Is he always like this?" Ziva asked Mustang and Mustang nodded.

"You've got no idea."

* * *

They came to collect him ten minutes before they were supposed to leave. Ed was in the middle of telling Garcia a story about one of his missions, specifically the Father Cornello one, and was at the part where he'd just used the Sun God's statue's arm to knock the priest down when Morgan, Ziva and Rossi showed up.

"Are you sure you'll be alright? What about your arm? You shouldn't be doing this." Garcia fussed as he went to stand up.

"I'll be alright, Miss Penelope, I swear. My arm is fine. Doctor Mallard did a really good job on it and it won't be the first time I've fought someone with a barely-functioning arm." He told her and panicked a little when that seemed to make her sadder.

"We'll look after him, baby girl." Morgan promised her and she spun to face him, a threatening look on her face.

"You had better! I want both of my favourite men back here in one piece! All of you better get home in one piece or I'm gonna be so mad!" She gave everyone, even Ziva, a glare and Morgan gave her a sappy smile that made her melt a little bit.

"We'll get home to you. Don't you worry too much, mama." He said, grabbing her in a quick side hug while she huffed.

"Good." She sniffed before giving Edward a hug, being careful of all of his injuries. "You stay safe. We want to get you home to your brother in one piece." She reminded him and he gave her a smile.

"See you soon, Miss Penelope!" He called as he followed the three agents out of the room.

* * *

Now they were standing across the street, near the storage units, and looking at the building Moore was holed up in. The cars were parked down the block and around a corner, just to be safe. Every member of the NCIS and BAU teams were here. Morgan and DiNozzo had scouted the sides of the building and reported seeing no one standing guard at any of the doors. Now it was Ed's turn. He stood in front of the building, something that had caused a small tiff but Ed had gotten his way, and clapped his hands. He activated the array, spread his hands out in front of him and opened his eyes so he could scan the building. Once he'd scanned the four levels, he stopped the array. He felt the expected tiredness but he shook it off, activating his absorbing array as he headed back to the group.

"I counted 18 people inside. Moore is definitely there. He's on the fourth floor with three people nearby. The third floor has two separate groups of three people. The second floor has a group of four and the ground floor has four people but they're split into pairs and are close to the doors. I couldn't sense any stones but that doesn't mean much. Like I already told you, I have to be close to sense them when they aren't in use." Ed explained what he saw quickly.

"What's your plan?" Gibbs asked, nodding at the two alchemists.

"Well, assuming Mustang's not too old to do so, I thought we might actually sneak in through one of the windows. They didn't look locked." Ed said and Mustang grumbled at the jab. "If we can do that and sneak past the four of the first floor, we'd be able to take the second floor by surprise and might even be able to stop one of them alerting the third floor." Ed told them.

"That means that you guys will have to take down the four on the first floor though." Mustang pointed out and Hotch gave him a look.

"I think we can handle it." He said dryly and Ed snorted. Mustang jabbed Ed with an elbow and Ed smacked him with his hand. Hotch exchanged a look with everyone. "You remember how to signal us?" Ed and Mustang nodded. "Good. Whenever you're ready." Hotch told them and the two alchemists moved silently. Ed and Mustang had forgone their jackets to remain as inconspicuous as possible and Mustang had even worn a dark blue dress shirt JJ and Garcia had bought for him so he wouldn't stand out. They headed to the right side of the building and tested each window before finding one that opened for them.

Climbing in was a painful experience for Ed. He'd been ignoring his arm for the most part but the injury made itself well known again when he pulled himself up and through the window. Only years of training with Teacher and practice stopped him from gasping from the pain and helped him control his breathing once he was in the building again. Mustang hauled himself in a moment later and shot Ed a concerned look. Ed waved it off and they headed for the door.

Peeking through the crack they made, they couldn't see anyone and carefully made their way out of the room. The first floor was obviously intended to be a space for storage rooms and admins to greet anyone who walked in. They hid behind the bench the workers would greet people from and had another look. They spotted the first pair sitting so their backs were to the alchemists and were diligently watching the front door. A look behind them was blocked by a slab of wall that probably had the company's name and logo on it. They rounded it and spotted the second pair mimicking the first one. Backs to them, facing the door. Mustang and Edward headed straight for the staircase, neither making so much as a whisper of a noise in their wake.

* * *

 

The trek up the stairs was slow and quiet. They had to be careful not to make any noise at all so they didn't spook the person who was supposed to alert the next group to their presence. Mustang reached the top of the stair and carefully looked around the corner. This room was all bullpens, similar to the ones at the NCIS headquarters. Mustang looked back at Edward before signing.

 _"Where are they?"_  He asked and Edward signed back.

 _"In the middle but in a circle with their backs to each other."_  He told him and Mustang nodded before thinking.

 _"Could one of us sneak past to block the stairs?"_  He asked and Ed recalled the blue prints of the room and his own scan.

 _"Possible. There's a storage room that has a door that links to the kitchen area. If you're careful, you should be able to slip into the storage room and out of the kitchen without them seeing."_  He told him.

 _"2 minutes."_  He signed back before disappearing around the corner and Ed waited. The two minutes slipped by slowly and he moved so he was in position. Once the two minutes were up, he peeked around the corner and looked in the direction of the second staircase. He saw a flash of white, Mustang's gloves, and moved quickly. Mustang did the same thing. They both reached the group of four noiselessly and none of them had noticed until they were right on top of them.

Ed pinched a nerve on the first person's neck, a younger looking woman, and she was out cold instantly. Mustang had a little more trouble with the lanky teenager he was fighting but soon had him in a choke-hold and he was out cold. One of two remaining ones tried to make a break for the stairs but Mustang was able to just grab his shirt by the collar and yank him back while Ed fought the last remaining person. The man swung a wild punch that connected with the stab wound on Ed's shoulder and his vision went white with pain but he still managed to connect his automail first with the man's temple in a controlled punch. By the time his vision cleared, Mustang had the last person down and gagged with his own shirt but still conscious. Ed pretended not to see the concerned look Mustang shot him, instead he removed the jacket off of the man he fought and turned it into ropes to bind and gag their four would-be attackers up so they couldn't make trouble if they woke before they were done.

The walk up to the third floor was taken just as quietly and slow as the trip to the second floor. Mustang went to use the same plan once he realised this floor was set up like the one below but Ed grabbed him and shook his head.

 _"No good. Different positions and two groups to deal with. They'd spot you."_  He told him and Mustang let out a silent sigh.

 _"What's the plan?"_  He asked and Ed considered the options. His eyes lit up when he spotted an air vent. He gesture for Mustang to move before peeking around the corner himself and grinned when he saw what he wanted to see.

 _"We use the vents. I'll sneak through them and drop down in front of the second group. You can take out the closer group."_  Ed told him and Mustang raise his brow.

 _"You going to be okay with that arm? And your automail?"_  He asked and Ed scowled.

 _"Of course I am. I wouldn't have suggested it if I couldn't do it."_  He would've snarled if if wouldn't have given away their positions. Mustang held his arms up in a surrender position. Ed glared but stood under the vent.  _"Give me a leg up."_ He ordered and Mustang raised a brow but did as he was told. Ed removed the vent cover carefully and handed it to Mustang who placed it under his arm before lifting Ed the rest of the way so he could crawl into the vent. He barely stopped himself from sighing once Ed's weight was gone. He always forgot how heavy the kid was.

He placed the vent cover carefully against the wall and decided to give Edward five minutes. He strained his hearing but he couldn't hear a thing, something Mustang had to marvel at. After five minutes, he checked around the corner and looked at the vent he assumed Edward would be popping out of. He saw the cover lift and readied himself. When Edward dropped down from the vent, he moved and intercepted the group closest to him.

Ed had his work cut out for him. Not only did he have to fight three people but he also had to stop them from making it up to the fourth floor and warning Moore. These three were more capable at fighting than the last group which didn't help matters. One tried to leave but Ed mimicked what Mustang had done downstairs and grabbed him by the back of his shirt and threw him into the woman who was trying to hit him. They went down and Ed blocked a punch from the second woman. Unfortunately for her, she'd thrown all her strength behind that hit and it landed on his automail. He winced as he heard the slight cracks of her fingers breaking and she howled, grabbing her arm and cradling it. Ed took pity on her and knocked her out by pinching a particular spot on her neck.

The other two had gotten to their feet and Ed was now fighting two on one. Ed was forced backwards and a few lucky blows got in but they weren't hard enough to do much more than bruise. He landed blows of his own and he had to give these two credit; neither of them backed down from the fight. He was forced up one of the stairs before he clapped his hands for the first time since entering this building and placed them on either side of the staircase. His array created hands from whatever the walls were made of and he pinned the two fighters to the ground. They tried to struggle their way out but it was no use.

He looked up to see Mustang fighting one guy while the woman and a man in his trio sat on the ground, watching him. Typical. Of course Mustang would get the group where the majority just decided to surrender. He gagged the two who weren't unconscious and left them pinned under the hands before securing the third member of his trio and making his way over to Mustang. He could see Mustang was trying not to resort to his flame alchemy and Ed did have to admit the man he was fighting was putting up a decent fight. But, he was still salty about Moore escaping and wanted to get up there quickly so he waited before sticking out his right hand just in time for Mustang's opponent to run into it, dazing himself. They quickly tied and gagged him before Ed looked pointedly at the other two.

"They decided they didn't want to fight." Mustang told him and Ed scowled before realising something.

"So you're telling me I took down three people by myself and incapacitated the only one you were fighting so you could take him down?" Ed asked, grinning and Mustang grimaced. "What are we doing with them?" He asked, changing the subject to be nice.

"We'll still have to tie them up. Can't risk one of the agents thinking they got loose or them changing their mind and letting everyone go." Mustang whispered to him and Ed nodded before handing over some rope. The two who'd surrendered had agreed to being tied up, once they were assured they wouldn't be arrested. Once the six people on this floor had been bound, the two alchemists headed up the last flight of stairs. Mustang raised a brow at the two struggling pinned to the floor but didn't say anything as they passed them. Ed put his hand out to stop Mustang when they were nearly at the top.

 _"Wait here in case someone manages to get loose."_  He told him and Mustang shook his head.

 _"You're not going in there by yourself."_  He signed as firmly as he could and Ed rolled his eyes.

 _"Moore's defenseless and I've gone up against more people on my own before. I'll be fine. Stay here."_  He ordered again before leaving so Mustang couldn't argue further. He approached the door before stopping and activating his tracking array. He scanned the inside of the room and noted the positions of the four occupants before releasing the array. Clapping his hands again, he placed his hands in the centre of the door and blasted it inwards and straight into one of Moore's bodyguards, knocking the man backwards into the closest wall. He didn't get back up.

"Alright, dickhead. You're under arrest again. You two," he gestured to the two non-Amestrians who had taken a step forward and now paused, "haven't done anything illegal. Yet. If you leave quietly, you won't get arrested." They looked at each other before charging Ed. "Dumbasses." He sighed before stepping through the door and meeting them partway.

* * *

 

They were really good fighters, obviously well trained and Ed was mildly curious as to how Moore found them and convinced them to fight for him. For each hit he landed, they landed one on him and Ed wondered if there was going to any part of him that wasn't bruised after this. The burlier of the two men was the main one to keep him occupied. The lankier one was obviously looking for an opening and Ed knew what he was after. The man wasn't exactly being subtle about which pocket he was looking at. The lankier man suddenly made a move and Ed immediately dodged and knocked the man on the shoulder, sending him sprawling to the ground with a pained grunt but the heavy-set man had seized his opportunity.

Ed felt a meaty arm wrap around his throat in a choke-hold, applying just enough pressure to make him struggle to breath but not cut his oxygen off completely. The way he had his arm wrapped around his throat made it so Ed was forced up onto his toes so he could get the precious little oxygen he was allowed. The lanky man got up, rubbed his shoulder and reached into the pocket containing the stones. Ed struggled and kicked the man in the gut but he pulled them out and the grip around Ed's throat tightened significantly. He could see Moore's triumphant grin as the second man handed him the stones before wrapping an arm around his gut where Ed's automail had landed.

"Good try, Edward. For someone who is called a genius above all others, you were pretty stupid bringing these to me and thinking you could win against me. But I do thank you for not making me go to you to get these back." Moore grinned at him and Ed growled. "Now, I think I'll kill you the same way you killed my brother. Let's see how you enjoy being burnt alive." He snarled, lip curling up like a feral animal, and Ed put a bit more effort into his struggling. Moore lifted a stone out of the bag and held it up so it glistened slightly before pointing it at Edward. He grinned dementedly and immediately yelped like a whipped dog when the stone rebounded on him.

The man's grip around Edward's throat slackened in surprise as Moore jumped back and shook his hand after dropping the stone. Ed clasped his hands together in front of him and swung them over his head, crushing the big mans nose and causing blood to cascade down his face. He stumbled backwards, letting go of Ed to clutch at his face instinctively. The lanky man took one look at the anger glistening on Ed's face before taking off through the open door. Ed barely registered the sound of flesh hitting flesh and something heavy thumping to the ground as he stalked towards a now scared and confused looking Moore.

"Did you really think that I was stupid enough to walk into an obvious trap with the one thing that would actually make you somewhat capable in a fight?" Ed spat and Moore's face went blank with realisation before he screwed it up in anger.

"You made false stones?" His face was nearly purple with anger and spittle was clinging to his lips. Ed swung his flesh fist and socked him right in the jaw, sending Moore stumbling to the side and into a desk.

"Of course I did. I mean, seriously?! Why the fuck would I risk you getting your grubby hands on the stones?" He said, almost coldly. He heard Mustang walk to the nearest window to unleash a fireball to signal the agents waiting outside. Moore straightened up, pure hate in his eyes and a knife now in his right hand. Ed barely had time register that when Moore sliced the knife at him, causing Ed to dodge back. Ed allowed himself one moment of surprise at the fact Moore's shoulder didn't seem to hinder him right now before throwing himself into the fight.

Ed very quickly realised he wasn't going to win this fight as easily as he should've been able too. Moore wasn't thinking about his actions. His anger and hate were fueling his movements, making it nearly impossible for Ed to get a read on what he was going to do. He'd seen Mustang grabbing the man who'd had Ed by the throat and escort him out but he knew that his boss wouldn't be able to help until Ed was out of the firing line.

Right now, Ed's plan was to keep Moore occupied until the opportunity to take him out quickly and as safe as possible rose. He was pretty successful considering Moore got angrier and angrier the more Ed dodged his increasingly desperate strikes and slashes. Ed got a few hits in to Moore's ribs and hips but he was using his automail as his main defense against the blade and he couldn't put much weight behind his left arm with his shoulder wound. He doubted he did much more than bruise and piss off Moore.

He was slightly distracted by the sound of numerous footsteps heading their way. He saw Mustang leave to head them off in his peripheral vision when Moore managed to slam him back into the wall. His eyes widened while Moore's glinted with triumph and glee as he watched Moore raise the knife, aiming for his neck. Ed moved a tad too slow and felt searing pain as the knife cut through the top of his shoulder and bury itself in the wall. Moore looked stunned that Ed had managed to dodge just enough for the blow not to be fatal. With his left arm in a shit-ton more pain, Ed buried his automail fist into Moore's gut, forcing the air in his lungs out and driving him back off of him. Mustang was right there and a punch from the fire alchemist put Moore on his knees.

As far as fights went, it wasn't the most exciting or longest one Ed had been in but it certainly was one of the more annoying ones. He watched as Hotch and Gibbs forced Moore to the ground while Morgan slapped handcuffs on him. Mustang and JJ were by his side in no time and Reid was hovering next to them, ready to inspect the wound once Mustang had been assured Ed was alright. Ed put up with the fussing for all of ten seconds before slapping hands away.

"I'm fine. I doubt it even needs stitches. Seriously, I'll ask Doctor Mallard to look at it. I swear to fuck, Mustang, I'll-" His threat was cut off by Moore's continuous growling becoming much louder and Mustang saw Ed's eye twitch.

"Fullmetal, don't-" Too late. Ed had slipped past the three of them and the two agents on either side of Moore as they lead him away before he drove his automail elbow up and into the back of Moore's head. Moore didn't even get the chance to make a noise before he was out cold. Everyone was staring at Ed.

"What? I didn't want to keep listening to him whinge." Ed said defensively.

"Fullmetal, you know you can't hit people when they're already in custody." Mustang scolded him. Ed looked at the slumped form of Moore being supported solely by DiNozzo and Morgan and looked back at Mustang.

"Whoops." He said in the most unapologetic and shameless tone Mustang had ever heard. He was fairly certain he heard a few suspicious sounding coughs from the agents. Mustang let out a long-suffering sigh as he followed everyone out of the room.

* * *

 

Ed sat in one of the FBI's SUVs and watched as local police crawled through the scene, arresting those who had put up a fight and talking to Hotch and Gibbs. Six of Moore's people weren't arrested but were asked to provide statements so they were loaded into the back of police cars as well. From what Ed could hear, the police officer in charge wasn't happy that NCIS and the FBI had decided to launch a joint raid without informing him first. Hotch and Gibbs were trying to smooth things over with him.

A paramedic approached Edward cautiously and, after a glare from Mustang, Edward let the woman look at his latest injury. She hissed in sympathy when she spotted it and started to clean it up. He barely flinched when he felt the antiseptic and she was chatting to him the whole time. She's been forced to remove the gauze Ducky had placed over his handiwork and had a look at it, with Ed's permission.

"You'll need to get these stitches done again and this wound will need stitches as well. Do you want me to take you to the hospital or are you okay to see a doctor yourself?" She asked and Ed decided he liked her. She didn't try and force him to go to a hospital, even though he could see she wanted too, and she didn't ask a lot of questions that weren't relevant.

"I'm good. Thank you." She pursed her lips but nodded and finished up what she was doing.

"This should hold it until you see a doctor. Are there anymore injuries?" She asked but Ed shook his head. She nodded and packed up her medical gear. "Go see a doctor soon and try to keep out of trouble." She said and Mustang snorted. Ed glared at him and the paramedic glanced at the two of them curiously before she waved and headed for her next patient.

Ed and Mustang hung back from the others and watched them work. They couldn't help considering it would draw attention to them and they were supposedly foreign diplomats who preferred to stay anonymous. At least, that's what the federal agents had been telling everyone who tried to approach them. The female paramedic was the first successful person to talk to them. When everything was finally under control, the NCIS and BAU teams headed back for their cars. Moore was already secured in the back of the NCIS sedan, having been hidden before the paramedics and local police arrived.

"Now what?" Morgan was the first one to talk and Ed sighed before leaning against the car.

"Well, we have over a day before our ride is here. I need to see Doctor Mallard so Mustang doesn't blow a fuse and we need to secure Moore somewhere so he can't escape between now and when we leave." Ed told them before looking around at the group. "Other than that, what do you suggest?" He asked and watched as a few faces lit up with ideas.

"I think we'll find something to keep you entertained." Prentiss said with a grin Ed couldn't help returning. "We'll discuss ideas once you've seen Doctor Mallard." She said and Ed nodded once.

"Done deal."


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Edward and Mustang find themselves back in another dimension but this time they're in a new city with new people and facing another rogue alchemist, only this one is out for their blood. With Truth not being involved, they must figure out how to take down the alchemist and get home. New friends and old come together to help them but will it be enough?

When they got back to NCIS, Ed watched as the others tried to figure out a way to get Moore's still unconscious form into the building without anyone noticing since technically Moore didn't exist and it was apparently frowned upon to put an unconscious person into an interview room without medical personnel looking them over. DiNozzo was the one who came up with the idea.

"Why don't we go to the back entrance of the morgue and take him in that way?" He suggested and Gibbs looked at him for a moment before pulling out his phone and having a quick conversation with Ducky.

"Good thinking, DiNozzo." Gibbs said before turning to the BAU. DiNozzo looked really proud of himself. "We'll take Moore and Edward through the morgue. Ducky can have a look at Edward's shoulder while we take Moore up to interrogation. Ziva, go tell Vance what we're doing." He ordered and she nodded.

"The rest of us will wait in the conference room for you and Ed." Hotch said and Gibbs nodded. Mustang didn't seemed pleased that Ed would be out his sight but he hid it pretty well. Ed rolled his eyes at the older man, refusing to admit he was touched by the concern, and hopped in the passenger seat, leaving McGee and DiNozzo to sit beside Moore while Gibbs drove and parked next to the ME van. Ducky was waiting for them and he didn't look too happy.

"You couldn't go more than a few hours without getting hurt?" He asked as Ed stepped out of the car. The blonde grinned sheepishly while the agents hauled Moore out.

"I'd like to say that this is the quickest I've gotten hurt after being patched up but I'd be lying." He told the doctor who sighed.

"Well, come on. I haven't got all day and don't think you won't get questioned about him." He glared at them all while pointing to Moore. Ed dutifully followed the doctor inside, leaving Moore in the capable hands of the NCIS agents. Ed sat in the spot he'd vacated only a few hours ago while Moore was hoisted onto an autopsy table. Ed half hoped the man would wake up so he could watch him freak out.

"I had a paramedic look at it. She said I also popped a couple of my stitches." Ed told Ducky as he removed his shirt. McGee and DiNozzo barely stopped themselves from flinching when they saw the amount of scars and bruises covering Ed's torso. Even without the scars there, the amount of bruising was almost impressive. Ducky carefully removed the dressings the paramedic had applied and made a sympathetic noise.

"You'll need stitches in that cut and I need to redo at least half the original ones." Ducky told him and Ed nodded casually. "I don't know if I have any local anesthetic left." Ducky said as he tried to remember.

"Don't worry about it. Just stitch me up without it." Ed told him and Ducky looked horrified.

"You are not getting a dozen or so stitches without some sort of pain relief. I'll find something." Ducky told him sternly before heading off to do just that while Ed watched him, a little shocked at the adamant attitude. McGee and DiNozzo sniggered at his face until stopped by a look from both Ed and Gibbs. "I had enough local anesthetic." Ducky announced as he came back.

"Sweet." Ed said as he watched Ducky administer it. After a couple of minutes, he couldn't feel anything and he gave the doctor the go ahead.

"So what happened this time?" Ducky asked as he started stitching.

"Well, he was kinda pissed that he fell for the fake stones and I may have made a comment about his intelligence being non-existent. Turns out he had a knife stashed in the room and he started attacking me. He got my shoulder but buried the knife in the wall doing so. I punched him in the gut to get him away from me and Mustang hit him hard enough for Gibbs and Hotch to cuff him with minimal resistance." Ed told him and Ducky hummed.

"So why is he unconscious? Who knocked him out?" Ducky queried and DiNozzo snorted slightly.

"That would be me." Ed told him and Ducky looked confused. "I knocked him out because his voice was getting really annoying." He explained and Ducky looked exasperated.

"At least tell me you don't make a habit of doing that." He asked and Ed actually had to think about his answer.

"No, usually I knock them out during the fight or they're smart enough to mouth off after I'm out of striking distance." Ed answered honestly. "Moore was neither. Idiot decided to bitch about him being arrested and kept threatening me and Mustang so I elbowed him in the back of the head." He said, a little defensively.

"I'm not certain why that doesn't surprise me." Ducky muttered, continuing his work on Ed's shoulder. McGee and DiNozzo joined Ed's chuckle. Ducky soon had all necessary wounds stitched up and was just packing when Moore started stirring. Ed was kind of surprised the dude had stayed out as long as he had.

"McGee, take Edward upstairs to the conference room." Gibbs ordered and Ed went to argue but realised it was probably for the best he wasn't around if and when Moore started his bitching again. He heard the start of Moore's mumbling as the autopsy doors shut behind them and the elevator ones opened.

* * *

Opening the conference room door, he was greeted by far less noise than he expected. Though, now that he was thinking about it, it was nearly 5am and everyone was probably tired. Ed knew he was, despite his extended nap the day before. Mustang was the first to notice him, though Ed had the feeling that was because he was already watching the door, even though he'd been doing a good job at pretending he wasn't.

"Edward!" Mustang was, however, not the first person to greet him. JJ got that honour as she stood up to fuss over him. "Are you alright?" She asked, her concerned-mum voice coming out. She had his face in-between her hands and was checking the bruises she could see.

"Doctor Mallard patched me up. I'll be pretty sore tomorrow but I'm alright, Miss JJ." Ed told her and she looked at him for a moment before sighing.

"You should go back to the hotel and get some sleep." She said but Hotch spoke up.

"First, we need to know what happened after he and Agent David were taken. Everything from that moment until we showed up." Hotch said, looking at Ed slightly apologetically.

"Okay. So you saw Miss Ziva and I get put in that van, right?" He asked and everyone nodded. He started telling them everything and no one commented throughout the story, except to snort when Ziva reminded him he'd turned around and flipped Moore off as they were running. It took him a little while to tell it all and Ziva made some comments when Ed missed something, which he appreciated. "And then you lot turned up just as Moore stabbed me, the prick, and yeah. That's it." He finished.

"Thank you, Ed. Do you think you can tell us what happened in the building tonight? The Brigadier-General has already given us his version but we'd like to hear yours." Rossi asked and Ed scowled at the use of Mustang's title.

"Sure. So we snuck past the first four people. Mustang and I took down the next four. Then I snuck through the air vents and took down three people and helped Mustang tackle the only one in his trio that decided to fight. Then we headed up and I used the door Moore was hiding behind to take out one of the three idiots who decided to fight for him. The big fella eventually got me in a choke hold while the skinny one stole the stones and gave them to Moore. Moore fell for the trick, I broke the big fella's nose and the lanky dude took off. From what I heard outside, Mustang took care of him. After that, I fought Moore, who was really pissy I wasn't as dumb as he thought I was, and I'm pretty sure Mustang took the other dude out of the room but I was pretty occupied with Moore's knife so I don't actually know. Then Moore tried to stab me and kinda missed and I hit him in the gut and Mustang punched him. Then you lot came in." Mustang was kind of glad he wasn't the only person Ed reported to like that but Hotch didn't seem to mind.

"Well, that seems pretty consistent with what the Brigadier-General said." Ed rolled his eyes at the title. "Did you guys want to go back to the hotel for a rest?" Hotch asked and Ed and Mustang exchanged a look.

"We will but separately; just in case." Mustang told them and Ed nodded. Hotch and the others looked like they wanted to insist they both just go but decided against it.

"Okay. Who's first?" Hotch asked.

"Me. He did fuck-all and I need a shower." Ed said, jumping back up and dismissing Mustang before he could even talk with a wave.

"I'll agree you need a shower." Mustang drawled and Ed's hackles raised.

"I'll kick your arse." Ed warned and Mustang raise a brow in a 'what are you waiting for' manner. Ed saw it a second after Morgan did.

"As much fun," Morgan said as he caught Ed by the right arm, "as it would be to see you actually kick his arse, we should go before traffic gets too bad." Ed glared at Mustang before turning to Morgan.

"Sure. Let's go." Prentiss came over at a nod from Morgan and Ed flipped Mustang off as they left the room.

It didn't take long for them to get to the hotel, though it took longer than Ed thought since there was still so much traffic. One good about Central, and Amestris in general, is there weren't this many cars. Ed headed up to his and Mustang's room before turning to face them as he opened his door.

"Wake me up in," he thought for a second, "five hours. That should be good enough. Then Mustang can come and get his beauty sleep." Ed told them and Morgan nodded but Prentiss looked a little concerned.

"Are you sure five hours will be long enough?" She asked and Ed nodded.

"Yup. I'll use my absorbing array while I sleep. It'll be fine." Ed told her and, although she didn't look convinced, she nodded and they left him be. The shower he took was amazing. He could feel the crazy from Moore and his lackeys washing off of him and he was grateful Ducky had thought to put waterproof bandages on him so he didn't have to worry about changing them when he got out. Throwing on a clean shirt and boxers, he slipped into bed and was asleep only moments after drawing and activating his array.

* * *

He woke up groggily to the sound of someone knocking on his door. Rubbing his eyes to get the sleep out of them, he opened the door to see Morgan on the other side.

"If it hasn't been five hours-" He started threateningly but Morgan held his hands up in a calming gesture.

"Chill, blondie, it has been. You alright? Do you want more sleep?" He asked, doing a very good job at not staring at Ed's automail. None of them had ever seen either of the whole limbs and it was rather disconcerting but, Morgan grimaced internally, he'd seen worse. Ed glared at him blearily.

"No." He finally said, the threat of death vanishing from his eyes. "I'm awake now. Just give me twenty minutes? Yeah, that should be plenty. Twenty minutes and I'll be ready. But we need coffee. The stuff in here is terrible and I need decent coffee to wake me up from not enough sleep." Ed told him sternly and shut the door before Morgan could say anything. The FBI agent just nodded and went to tell Prentiss.

Twenty minutes later, Morgan and Prentiss where waiting downstairs in the lobby. Edward joined them a couple of minutes later, wearing another pair of jeans, his red hoodie from before and a black tee with the quote 'ask me if I care (hint: I don't)' written on it. Prentiss wondered if Garcia had been the one to pick it out. She was fairly certain she was.

* * *

 

The drive back to NCIS took forever, or so it felt, but that was only because of all the traffic and Ed needing food and coffee to function properly. He looked at the clock in the car and saw it was nearly 11am which meant they had over 25 hours before Al would open the portal again. Ed wondered if he could talk Doctor Reid into finding him some books to pass the time then he remembered some of the agents had said there was stuff they wanted him to try before he left again.

They finally got back to the building. Security was as thorough as ever and Ed wondered what would happen if they did find something. He was curious as to how they would respond. Almost immediately, the voice in his head (that sounded suspiciously like Al) was telling not to do anything stupid. For once, he listened to it. The second SUV was still there when they parked so he figured none of the others were out of the building. At least, he assumed that most of the BAU agents and his commanding officer were still inside. That theory was proven correct when they walked into the conference room and saw everyone, including Vance, there.

"Appropriate." Mustang smirked, eyes darting down to Ed's shirt and back up.

"You know it." Ed said, collapsing into his chair. He vaguely heard someone ask if he was alright, JJ, he thought, and gave them a thumbs up. "Just waiting for the coffee to kick in." He muttered and heard a familiar snicker. He flipped the older alchemist.

"I'll head to the hotel now that Fullmetal is back." Mustang announced and Ed lifted his head up. Rossi and JJ were standing near him.

"Thank fuck. You need all the sleep you can get in your old age." Ed snarked and Mustang glared.

"Keep it up, brat, and I'll tell Alphonse how little sleep you've been getting." He threatened but Ed looked thoroughly unimpressed.

"You think he doesn't already know? But go ahead. While you tell him that, I'll tell Miss Riza just how well-rested and eager to get to your paperwork you are." He quirked a brow, challenging Mustang to try him and the flame alchemist glared at the blonde before Rossi cleared his throat not so subtlety and Mustang nodded.

"Try not to blow the building up, Fullmetal." He drawled as he left.

"You're not in it. What would be the point?" Ed snapped as the door shut. He still glared at it, just in case. He looked back at the group and saw the bewildered look on DiNozzo, Ziva and McGee's faces. The BAU looked resigned, they were used to it after all, and both Gibbs and the director looked nonplussed by it. "What?" He asked the three shocked agents.

"Okay, do you two get along or not?" DiNozzo asked bluntly. He didn't seem phased by the 'seriously?' looks he was getting from his two teammates.

"Course we do. Wouldn't work together if we didn't." Ed frowned, confused. DiNozzo looked even more perplexed. Ed looked at him like he wasn't sure how he wasn't getting this. "If I don't like someone, I don't go near them and I certainly don't work with them. Sure, at first I hated him and worked under him simply because he knew the truth behind my and my brother's injuries and he'd offered me a way to find a way to fix them as long as I worked for him. He was very open about how he was just using me as a political tool to climb to the top of the military ladder and I couldn't, and still don't, give a fuck about that. As long as he kept our secret and let me search for what I needed, I didn't care. There have been plenty of military higher-ups who have approached me with kind words and amazing promises and I told them all to fuck off because it was obvious to me that Mustang was the only one in the military who would do me the common courtesy of telling me the truth, no matter how harsh it was. It wasn't until after Father that Mustang and I could actually talk without fighting and without worrying about corrupt dicks trying to use it against us." He told them, a little annoyed he had to explain this so soon after waking up.

"So the fighting?" McGee asked and Ed sighed.

"It's what we always do. If someone you worked with all the time suddenly changed the way they acted around you or someone you both work with, what would you think?" He asked pointedly and saw the moment they understood. "We act like this because it's habit to act this way around people. Even around our teammates and my brother. If Mustang and I weren't getting along, we wouldn't be taunting each other like this." He shrugged and sat up properly.

"That actually makes a lot of sense." DiNozzo said, sounding a little surprised. Ziva rolled her eyes at him.

"Of course it does. Now, what are we doing to kill the next 24ish hours?" He asked just before the conference room door burst open, startling just about everyone. Abby stood on the other side, Garcia close by.

"Mustang told us you were back." Abby said in way of explaining. She hauled Ed up and hugged him tightly before letting him go. He barely had time to react to that when Garcia swept him up in an equally tight hug. "Hey, Director Vance. We're stealing Edward." Abby said once she realised the big boss was in the room.

"And why are you stealing Edward, Miss Scuito?" He asked, deep voice tinged slightly with amusement. Ed had finally been released by the blonde and was now being lectured about worrying her.

"Oh, I ran blood tests on the Amestrians, is that right?" She asked Ed, who nodded. She faced the director again. "I ran tests on their blood. Scientific curiousity. I wanted to see the difference between us on a genetic level and also needed to type Moore's in case we had to I.D. a body." She informed him.

"And that has what to do with kidnapping our guest?" He asked, making her realise she hadn't  _actually_  answered the question.

"Oh! Ed was curious as well and all of the results are in now so I was going to show him if you guys didn't need him anymore. Sir." She added the last part quickly, like she'd almost forgotten to do so.

"Why are you with Miss Scuito, Garcia?" Hotch asked and Garcia looked over at him, stopping her fussing over Edward for the moment.

"Scientific curiousity." She said.

"You aren't a scientist." Hotch pointed out, brow quirked in amusement.

"But I am curious." She sing-songed back and Hotch allowed a small smile before nodding. She grinned before beginning to pull Edward through the door.

"We'd like him back in one piece, Miss Scuito. And," he added, looking at both Edward and Abby, "no more experiments with alchemy that result in explosions, no matter how minor." He warned and Ed gave him a sheepish grin.

"Yes, Director." Abby smiled her nicest smile. Ed looked over at Reid.

"Hey, Reid, do you wanna come with?" He asked and Reid looked at Hotch hopefully. The BAU team leader just nodded and Reid grinned, eyes glinting with excitement as he joined them. They were out of the door a moment later, oblivious to everyone's amusement at their excitement.

* * *

 

Soon they were entering Abby's lab and were surprised to see Doctor Mallard standing near the computer screens. A quick look around confirmed there was no one else down there and Ed theorised that maybe the good doctor was down here for the same reason; he wanted to see what their blood showed.

"Hey, Doctor Mallard." Ed greeted the coroner as they piled into the lab. The elderly man looked up, mildly startled at their arrival.

"Ah, Edward. How are you this morning? Or, rather, afternoon. You haven't gotten into another fight, have you?" He asked and Ed shook his head.

"Nope. Went back to the hotel and crashed for a few hours so I'm good. You down here to see what Miss Abby found out?" He asked and Ducky nodded.

"Oh, yes. I admit I am rather intrigued by what differences there could be in our blood. Abby has, of course, already shown me the results from your blood tests. It's rather remarkable that your DNA doesn't share a link with any ethnicity in our world." Ducky sounded curiously excited about it.

"To be honest, my brother and I are the only people in Amestris, that we know of, who are members of a particular race that was wiped out hundreds of years ago. We're half Xersian, half Amestrian. I'm not surprised you don't have a race here that matches that. Apparently, gold eyes are unheard of in both our worlds." Ed grinned at him. Ducky looked very interested.

"My, that is fascinating. How is it you are half - Xersian, was it?" Ducky asked and Ed nodded. "Half Xersian if that race went extinct hundreds of years ago?" Ed contemplated the answer, not really knowing what to say in response.

"My father," no one missed how he practically spat that word, "Hohenheim, was the alchemist Father had deceived into wiping out a whole civilisation in order for him to gain eternal life and a human body. As a reward, I suppose, Father turned Hohenheim into a homunculous. They look human but they have a Philosopher's Stone inside of them that practically makes them immortal. Unless you're me and they piss you off so you find ways to destroy stones permanently so you can kill them. Anyway, Hohenheim was Xersian so we're half Xersian." Ed explained and Ducky nodded.

"I'm assuming from what you mentioned, your eye colour is a trait of the Xersian race?" Ducky asked and Ed nodded. "I see. Well, you are right about your eye colour being unusual. I've certainly never seen or heard of anyone coming across people whose eyes were naturally gold in colour." He said.

"This is all really fascinating, and no I'm not being sarcastic, but let's get to what we came down here for." Abby interrupted and Ed scratched the back of his neck self-consciously.

"Sure thing, Miss Abby. What'd you find out?" He asked as he moved closer to the computer screens. She tapped at the keyboard for a moment before the big TV in front of her had multiple files opened on it. She moved them around to it so they could all see.

"Okay, so this is Moore's blood. This one is Ed's and this one is Mustang's." She told them, pointing at the screens in question. They nodded to show they got it. "So, first thing I did was look at the genomes that indicate race. As you probably heard, Ed's doesn't really show up anywhere. Some of them indicate he could be of German descent but they aren't an exact match. Moore's closely resembles German descent so I'm assuming that Amestrian DNA would register German as being the closest match. Mustang's indicates more of an Asian descent, maybe Japanese, possibly Korean. I'm assuming Mustang isn't descended from Amestrians?" She asked and Ed nodded.

"Yeah, his parents were Xingese, from what I know." He told her and she nodded.

"Okay, so Mustang would be registered as Asian descent." She concluded. "But like I said, none of their race genomes match exactly to any region. They just share similar markers to ones we've registered here." She sounded completely fascinated by this. Ed was intrigued by that as well.

"Oh, what about that second anomaly you found, Miss Abby?" He asked, remembering how it was the whole reason they made Mustang give them blood. Abby immediately pulled up the files she needed.

"Okay so this was the second thing that really got me curious." She said before using her pointer to show them what she meant. "Ed already knows what my hypothesis is for it. I think it's their alchemy." She tells the rest of them.

"Why?" Reid asked, not condescendingly but rather curious as to how she reached that conclusion.

"It was something Ed said. He was born with the talent and the brains to do it. So I figured it had something to do with his genetic make up and this anomaly is present in all three samples, though it's very faint in Moore's. Therefore, alchemy." She explained and Ed nodded.

"She's probably right. Moore has alchemic talent; he just doesn't have enough for it to count. There are probably hundreds of people in Amestris who have the energy inside of them but lack the actual ability to use it." Ed told them. "There's a difference between reading about something and actually doing it. I don't really know if that makes sense. I guess the best way to put it is there's something instinctual about performing alchemy and if you don't have that instinct, you can't transmute." Ed tried to explain and he was relieved to see they understood what he was trying to say.

"So you think Abby's right? That anomaly is your alchemy on a DNA level?" Reid asked and Ed nodded. "That's amazing. I wonder what else we could find out if we did an in-depth study of your blood." He mused and Ed shook his head.

"Miss Abby's destroyed all of our blood samples, right?" He asked and she nodded.

"Yeah as soon as I was done with them, they got incinerated. I'll end up scrubbing the results from my systems as well." Abby said, sighing a little sadly.

"Thanks, Miss Abby." Ed said sincerely, giving her a grateful smile. Reid distracted Abby with all sorts of questions that she and Ducky took turns in answering. Ed joined in while Garcia asked more clarifying question as she was into tech stuff, not icky stuff, so she wasn't always able to follow what they were saying until she had them explain it a bit more for her.

They'd moved on from the blood samples to technology when Ed had admitted he wasn't sure what half the stuff in the lab did and that the most advanced things they had in Amestris were phones and cars. Reid and Garcia already knew this from his last visit and Abby and Ducky had suspected but the two NCIS employees hadn't realised how badly behind his world was. Morgan and DiNozzo walked in on that conversation and were admittedly confused considering they were expecting the conversation to still be about the blood samples and stuff.

"Hey, Boo." Garcia greeted Morgan as she spotted the two men entering.

"What up, loser?" Abby greeted Tony in turn as Ed raised a hand in a half wave.

"Hey, baby girl." Morgan smiled, sliding to stand behind Garcia while Tony went to stand next to Abby.

"Hey, nerd." He said, squeezing her in a half hug as he spotted Ducky. "Oh hey, Ducky. Didn't realise you'd be down here." He said, giving the doctor a grin.

"Well, I was admittedly intrigued when Abby showed me the results from young Edward's blood. I just had to see the other results myself." Ducky told him and Tony nodded. He didn't understand the fascination over some blood but he could understand why Ducky would be interested.

"I'm sure you two aren't here to see what Abby found so what's up?" Reid asked and Morgan nodded.

"You'd be right. Prentiss and JJ want Ed for some reason." Morgan said and Ed furrowed his brow in confusion.

"Did they say what they wanted?" He asked. He couldn't remember them asking him for anything.

"Nope. They just told us to come get you. You don't argue with JJ when she's using her mum voice." Morgan told him and Reid and Garcia snickered behind Ed. "You two, shut your mouths." He ordered but the humour in his eyes kinda lessened the effect.

"Come on then. We better not keep them waiting." Ed said before facing Abby. "Thank you for showing me the results. They were really informative." He said, dipping into a small bow. Abby immediately swept him up into a hug once he'd straightened.

"Thanks for letting me do the tests. It was fun." She said as he hugged her back, pretty much resigned to the constant hugs he got from Abby and Garcia now. He was finally released and allowed to leave, everyone except Abby and Ducky accompanying him back up to the conference room. Vance was no longer there and Ed wasn't surprised to see Rossi and Mustang weren't there but he was surprised JJ wasn't there either.

"I thought you said Miss JJ was the one to ask me back up here?" He asked Morgan.

"Yeah, she called. Someone's taking you and Prentiss back to the hotel so that person can switch with JJ." Morgan explained and Ed blinked before deciding to roll with it.

"Oh. Okey dokey. I'm ready whenever you are, Miss Emily." He said and she smiled at him before turning to Garcia.

"Are you coming with us?" She asked and Penelope nodded.

"Yup. Just let me get my bag. I'll meet you at the car?" She offered and Prentiss nodded so Garcia disappeared out of the room.

"Reid, do you want to head to the hotel with us and switch with JJ?" Prentiss asked and Reid considered for a moment.

"Sure. I can get some reading done." He said finally. Ed realised in that moment that he'd neglected to ask something.

"Hey, how's Moore?" He asked Gibbs, who sighed slightly.

"He's very... vocal." He told him irritably. "The director has had a few people comment about the amount of noise he's making." He told him and DiNozzo felt the need to add on to that.

"I'm honestly impressed he hasn't given up yet." He said and Gibbs glared at him.

"I can go shut him up again. It honestly wouldn't be an issue and I'd genuinely enjoy it." He offered, smirking a little.

"Tempting but no. We can't let you knock him out." Gibbs didn't sound overly happy to be saying that and Ed pouted a little.

"Not even if I use chemicals?" He asked and DiNozzo, Ziva and McGee certainly looked ready to take him up on it but Gibbs still shook his head.

"Not even than." He said reluctantly.

"Okay. But if you change your mind..." He trailed off pointedly and Gibbs almost smiled.

"I'll keep it in mind." He said dryly and Ed nodded before being hustled out the door by a now impatient Prentiss and amused Reid.

* * *

Prentiss didn't tell Ed anything about what they were doing during the whole drive and Garcia was just as quiet. Apparently, JJ was the one with the plan and wanted to tell Ed so they were respecting that, which was something Ed himself could respect. It only took him ruining a surprise from Winry for Al once before he learnt that lesson. Evidently, Al had also only needed to be taught that lesson once as well. They got to the hotel and JJ was already waiting outside for them. She and Reid exchanged a few words before Reid waved goodbye to the group and headed in. JJ took Reid's spot in the front passenger seat and gave Prentiss instructions.

"So where are we going?" Ed asked now that JJ was in the car and could answer him.

"I thought we'd take you to do some shopping with us so you can see what our country has to offer and after that, we're going to go see a movie I think you'd enjoy." She told him and Ed had to think back to when he first met Garcia and she was explaining pop culture to him and delved into movies. The idea of seeing a movie had excited Edward and JJ had been sad he never got to see one before he left so she was determined to make up for it now.

"Really?" He asked excitedly and JJ nodded.

"Yup. Though you'll probably appreciate the fact that you get to sit down after we're done shopping more. I've been told we're hard to keep up with." JJ said, half apologetic and half amused.

"I've had Winry drag me around the entirety of Central searching for one stupid wrench she wanted. I think I'll live." Ed grouched at the memory. It had taken forever to find the stupid wrench and, naturally, it was in the last fricking shop they'd looked at.

"I think he's challenging us." Garcia said to the other two women and they all had a twinkle in their eye that would've made Ed nervous if he hadn't been around Winry his whole life.

"Bring it on." He smirked and they all laughed at him. He kept asking questions about what they were going to do and see but JJ was still tight-lipped about it all, telling him he'd just have to wait and see.

* * *

 

Ed soon discovered that shopping with these three was quite different than shopping with Winry and the one time Miss Riza had asked him to accompany her so he could help her carry her purchases back to her apartment. The reason mainly being that both Amestrian women had known exactly what they were looking for. The three American women were just flitting in and out of random shops when something caught their eye, dragging Ed along with them. They kept trying to buy him things but Ed had asked how they expected him to take the stuff home, hoping the question would deter them from buying him the stuff they wanted to. They seemed to deflate a little and Ed called that a win until Garcia suddenly perked up.

"We can buy him a backpack to store it all in!" She exclaimed and the two other women were immediately on board with the idea.

"Guys, you do know you don't need to buy me things? Don't go spending your money on me. I can't pay you back for it." Ed finally said as they were dragging him to a store that would sell bags.

"We know, Ed." JJ told him.

"We want to though." Prentiss assured him.

"Besides, in the unlikely event we end up in Amestris somehow, you can return the favour." Garcia said cheerfully and that seemed to end the conversation for them. Anytime Ed raised an objection them buying him something, he was overruled. Except when Garcia tried to buy him something techy. JJ and Prentiss were on Ed's side then when he reminded her he wouldn't be able to use it in Amestris because of their lack of tech. Garcia had pouted but ultimately listened.

By the time JJ had announced they needed to head to the cinema, Ed was almost as tired as he was after one of Winry's visits. He had to admit, women shopping in both universes was just as exhausting as each other. They headed to the movie theatre after putting their purchases in the car since they'd bought too much stuff to take into the theatre. JJ went up to the ticket seller and bought all of their tickets to see a movie called 'Real Steel' and soon they were leading Ed into a darkened room with a massive screen and were taking their seats.

When they left after the movie was over, Ed couldn't stop asking questions about how the movie was made and some things he didn't understand that happened in the movie. Garcia did her best to answer the technical stuff and what she didn't know, she whipped out her phone and after a minute or so, she'd be able to tell him. It had blown his mind to learn that the movie was fictional, that most of the movie had been created with special effects and from computers. The other two women switched their mobiles back on and Prentiss excused herself as she called Hotch back. The other three members of the group kept walking towards the car. By the time Prentiss had caught up with them, they were organising the purchases they had made for Ed into the bag they'd bought him. Garcia had, once she'd seen them, declared backpacks too small and went and found him a duffel bag.

Ed had been forced to turn away since some of the gifts were supposed to be surprises and thus was the first to notice Prentiss rejoining them. She was still on the phone but from her casual joking with the person on the other end, Ed was fairly certain she wasn't talking to Hotch anymore. She hung up one whoever it was just as she reached the blonde alchemist.

"They're packing your stuff up, huh?" She asked and Ed nodded.

"Apparently, I'm not allowed to know what they got me until I get to Amestris." Ed told her and she didn't seem surprised. "What did Hotch want?" He asked.

"He wanted me to let you know Mustang was back at NCIS." She said and Ed nodded. He'd figured Mustang would've been awake by now.

"So who were you talking to just then?" He asked and Prentiss smirked.

"So you noticed I was on the phone with someone else, huh?" She asked and Ed nodded. "Good job. I was talking to Agent David. She asked that you not have anything to eat before we get back. She's cooked dinner for everyone." Ed perked up at that.

"She said she wanted to cook some of her home country's food for us but I didn't know if she would be able to." He said excitedly and Prentiss had to grin at how enthused he was. They hadn't really seen Ed act his age.

"I'll go and help those two so we can speed this up and get going, shall I?" Ed nodded his head so enthusiastically, Prentiss thought it was going to come off. She laughed, ruffled his hair, and made her way over to the two blonde women. She packed away the stuff she'd bought Ed as well and helped the two women, like she'd promised and in no time at all, they were telling Ed he could get in the car.

* * *

The trip back was a little quicker than the trip out there since they didn't have to go to the hotel to pick anyone up. They spent the car ride actually talking about the shopping trip and the movie since all of Ed's questions about the technical side of it had been answered. Garcia had decided the best part of that movie was Hugh Jackman and the two women agreed while Ed rolled his eyes once Garcia had informed him who Hugh Jackman was.

The drive through the security was as uneventful as it was every other time and soon they pulled up beside the second SUV and were clambering out. There was a moment where they considered taking the shopping inside until it was pointed out that they'd have to bring it back out and no one would steal it from the car anyway so they left it. They could smell the food as soon as they left the elevator and their mouths watered. There was no hesitation to enter the conference room.

"Hey, we're back." JJ greeted as she walked through the door, followed by Prentiss, Ed and Garcia. Greetings were exchanged and they took the seats left for them. Ed sat in between Mustang and Ziva while JJ and Prentiss sat next to Morgan and DiNozzo and Garcia sat on Morgan's other side. The only person missing was Vance, who wasn't able to join them due to prior arrangements, according to Ziva when Ed asked.

"I hope you all enjoy the food. Dig in." Ziva said when Gibbs pointedly looked at her and then the food. No one hesitated after she spoke. Ed grabbed some of everything, Ziva whispering what was what to him as he reached for each item. He was nice enough to pass along the information to Mustang.

Conversation was kept light, mostly everyone asking Ed and the three women what they got up to after they'd left. Ed left most of the answering to the girls, too busy enjoying everything he had on his plate. Ziva seemed pleased whenever he tried something new, like the Ptitim or the chicken albondigas, tentatively before digging into the rest of it with vigor. He was just trying the falafel when he heard his name. Looking up, he saw it was Rossi who was talking to him.

"Sorry, what?" He asked after he finished his mouthful. Mustang snorted and tried to pass it off as a cough. It didn't work but Ed didn't get the chance to retaliate because Rossi was repeating himself.

"I asked if you had fun. You were being pretty quiet over there." He said and Ed nodded quickly before Garcia could look too worried.

"Oh, yeah, it was awesome seeing how different shops here are. You guys sell so much more varieties of the same stuff than we do. Plus, the movie was really amazing to see. I hope Amestris catches up in terms of technology quickly. I am sorry for not answering more questions but the food is just really good." He smiled sheepishly and Ziva flushed a little at the praise.

"You're lucky Fullmetal heard you at all. Good food seems to capture all of his focus." Mustang teased and this time Ed did retaliate by stamping on his foot with his automail one. Though he was nice enough to not put all of his strength behind it; just enough for Mustang to get the point. The growl the flame alchemist emitted told Ed he had.

"I'm glad you two are enjoying my food." Ziva said, smiling happily and Ed grinned back before digging back into his serving; though he did pay more attention to the conversations than he did before.

"You are an excellent cook, Agent David." Mustang complimented her and she gave him a sunny smile. "I'd ask for recipes but I doubt I'd do these dishes any justice." He said, complimenting her but giving Ed an opening.

"Yeah, I heard last time Mustang was allowed in a kitchen, he burnt the water he was boiling." Ed told her and she wasn't able to stop her laughter in time. Mustang made an indignant noise.

"Who told you that?" He demanded to know and Ed looked at him.

"Elysia. Gracia backed her up after she finished laughing." Ed told him and had the pleasure of witnessing Mustang turning red with embarrassment.

"Who's Gracia and Elysia?" McGee asked and Ed looked over at him while Mustang was still trying to control himself.

"Mustang's best friend's wife and daughter." He told him and McGee nodded before being engaged in conversation with Garcia.

"I don't think I like the fact that you're staying with them any more." Mustang muttered as he dug back into his ptitim.

"I don't think I care." Ed told him as he tried some of the barbecued, or as Ziva called it 'mangal', meats that were offered. Ziva and Reid, who was sitting on Mustang's other side, snickered.

* * *

 

The rest of the night passed with more pleasant conversation and laughter. Abby, who had appeared a few minutes after they'd started eating, had disappeared again when her phone chimed to tell her some results were ready for a separate case. She came back fifteen minutes later, having e-mailed the results to the agent-in-charge, just in time for some dessert that Ziva had also whipped up, though she did have help from Ducky so is wasn't just Israeli food at the table now. Ducky was regaling them with stories from his younger years.

They spent the next couple of hours just relaxing at the table and discussing some of their cases, missions in Ed and Mustang's cases. They seemed to be taking it in turns, the BAU would talk about a case then NCIS would then Ed or Mustang. So far, they'd heard about the Zodiak Killer copycat, the woman who turned her victims into dolls, the cannibal who'd actually served one of his victims to a search party who was looking for another victim and a comic book writer who blacked out and hunted down his fiancee's killers. The NCIS team had told them about the serial killer who'd cut off and ate his victims toes, the military chaplain who had kidnapped multiple women so he could turn them into his wife before killing them, the Navy K-9 handler who everyone thought had been killed by his own dog (apparently the dog now belongs to McGee) and the NCIS agent friend of Abby's who had been killed trying to get a painting to her. DiNozzo had been a flustered mess when Gibbs recounted their ride up to the painter's cabin.

Mustang had told them about a few cases he and/or Hughes had worked before he became strapped to his desk. Ed had listened intently once he realised these weren't missions he'd heard about. He laughed when he realised that Hughes always planned his appearance for after the alchemic fights were over. Ed, in turn, told everyone about Father Cornello, Garcia being the only one who'd heard some of that story, the would-be train hi-jackers Hughes had helped him take care of, his fight against the Slicer brothers in lab 5 and how he'd tricked a greedy First Lieutenant into selling him a town he'd gained ownership of by tricking the townspeople and was bleeding them dry. He'd finished telling them about how Yoki had walked in on him having dinner at the newly built inn to complain the gold he'd given him was now coal only to find that Ed had given ownership of the town back to its people in exchange for a room to sleep in when Mustang shook his head.

"I feel like I shouldn't be surprised that you lied on that report. I knew it read too well." He sighed and Ed flashed him a shit-eating grin.

"If you knew half the shit I 'forgot' to put in my reports, you'd have to kick me out of the military." He told him and Mustang sighed.

"I don't ever want to know. I can imagine the paperwork that would go with it." He shuddered, causing Ed and a few of the others to laugh at him but he didn't seem to mind. They exchanged more stories until Gibbs had spotted that it was nearing midnight.

"Go home, or back to your hotel, and get some rest while none of us have a case." Gibbs said and Hotch had given his a team a look telling them not to argue. Ziva was glad to see she wouldn't have to deal with leftovers when she actually looked at her dishes. Everyone helped her stack them and carry them down to her car as they left, Garcia and Abby included.

"Thanks, guys." Ziva said as they finished loading the dirty plates in it. "I'm glad you all enjoyed it." Ed looked at all of the dishes and frowned.

"Will you be alright unloading all of that?" He asked. "Do you want us to help you?" He offered and she gave him a thankful smile but shook her.

"No, it's okay, Edward. Tony and McGee have already offered to help but thank you." Both aforementioned agents nodded and gave him a thumb up each. Ed nodded.

"Okay. Thank you for dinner, Miss Ziva. It was delicious." He faced Ducky. "And the desserts you made were really yummy as well, Doctor Mallard." He told him honestly.

"Yes, both dinner and dessert were delightful. Thank you." Mustang said and everyone else chorused them. Both Ziva and Ducky assured them it was no trouble and that they were glad they enjoyed themselves. After that, everyone bade each goodnight and they split up, heading for their own vehicles.

Before he knew it, they were at the hotel and parking the SUVs before heading upstairs. JJ and Prentiss were holding onto Ed's bag for now and he shook his head at them but didn't argue. They exchanged their own goodnights and Ed beat Mustang into the shower by simply getting there before the older man could even ask. By the time Mustang had emerged out of the shower after Ed, Ed is curled up in his bed with a new book he'd been leant by Reid.

"What are you reading?" Mustang asked and Ed flicked his eyes up to him before returning to the book.

"It's 'War and Peace' by a Russian author, Leo Tolstoy. Reid loaned it to me." Ed told him. Mustang snatched the book out of the boy's hands, ignored the 'hey!' yelled at him and flipped it over so he could read the pages Ed was on. Except, he couldn't read them. The book wasn't written in any language he could read.

"Are you even able to read that?" Mustang asked handing the book back to Ed who snatched it back and glared murder at him.

"Course I can. Reid said this was Russian but it's similar enough Drachman for me to figure it out." He growled as he settled back into his blankets to keep reading. Mustang shook his head. He didn't even know Ed knew Drachman. Utilising a skill he'd perfected during the Ishvalen Civil War, Mustang soon drifted off to sleep, despite the light and the occasional whisper of paper as Ed turned the page.

* * *

When Mustang woke up later that morning, he noted the time first. Groaning as he realised the clock was telling him it only 7:00am, he rolled over and he couldn't not grin at the sight he saw. Ed was still in the same position he was last night but fast asleep, with only a finger placed in-between the pages of the book to mark where he was up too. His hair was splayed over his face and his flesh hand was tucked up under his cheek. Mustang was always so surprised at how much younger he looked when he slept.

Hauling himself out of bed, he went through his normal morning routine, trying to be as quiet as possible so he didn't wake Ed up. He knew the kid was still tired from all of the alchemy he'd performed over the past few days and that he was still catching up on sleep he'd been denying himself in Amestris. He also knew that Ed would be the one to figure out a way to get them up into the portal, likely using alchemy somehow, so he was willing to let him sleep in. It didn't hurt that if he was asleep, he wouldn't be able to sass Mustang. He decided against the coffee in the room so he didn't wake the blonde up with its scent. He swore the kid was part blood-hound when it came to coffee. He'd just slipped out of the room to try and find more coffee when he ran into Rossi.

"Oh, I was just coming to see if the two of you were awake yet." Rossi explained and Mustang shrugged.

"Well, I am. Fullmetal is still asleep and I'd like him to stay that way for a little while more." Mustang not-so-subtly requested and Rossi observed him for a moment before nodding.

"That's fine. We don't need to be at NCIS for a little while anyway. What are you doing up though?" He asked.

"Looking for coffee. If he smells it, he'll wake up." Mustang said, gesturing to his closed door.

"Well, you're in luck. I was just about to head down to a coffee shop that's near here once I'd checked on you. You're welcome to join me?" He offered and Mustang took him up on it.

Despite the fact that it was barely 7:30am, the coffee shop was packed. The workers were doing their best to keep up with the customers but it was barely enough. Most of the customers seemed to realise this and were happy enough to wait but there were a few who muttered under their breath to each other about how ridiculous the wait time was. Rossi and Mustang eventually reached the front of the queue and Rossi placed his order with Mustang's tacked on last when prompted. Having paid, they joined the crowd who were also waiting for their orders. They got their order and were back at the hotel by 8:00am, much to the delight of the other BAU members who were eagerly awaiting their caffeine fix.

* * *

Ed woke up slowly and blearily. The first thing he remembered was he was reading before nodding off and immediately checked the book. Happy to see it in good condition, he memorised the page number he was on and sat up. The second thing he remembered was Mustang annoying him and he eyed up the other bed but it was empty. The bathroom was open and the kitchen abandoned so he assumed Mustang had been awake for a bit and had either joined the BAU team or was at NCIS already. A glance at the clock told him it was only 9:15am. He groaned as he stood, stretched until he felt all of his bones crack and pop into place and went for a shower. Emerging, he packed all of his stuff up and wore his original clothes. Brushing and plaiting his hair, he placed the borrowed hair brush on top of the clothing he was bought so he didn't have to dig it out to give it back to JJ. Finally, he left the bag on a chair and headed out of the room only to have JJ appear right in front of him, fist raised to knock on the door.

"What up?" He asked once they both got over their little shock.

"Not much. Came to see if you were up or not. Guess you answered my question." She said, pushing a coffee cup he hadn't noticed into his hand. He took it, brow raised questioningly. "I grabbed it before I came up here. I was going to wake you up anyway. Mustang said you would wake up yourself if you smelt coffee." She explained and he took a sip. It was good coffee.

"Well, he ain't wrong." Ed told her and she chuckled before gesturing for him to follow her. They headed two doors down and JJ opened the door for them. Ed walked in to see Rossi, Mustang and Prentiss sitting at the little table. "Yo. Where's everyone else?" He asked as he leant up against the benchtop, sipping at his coffee.

"Already at NCIS. Garcia needs to pack up her equipment and Vance had requested Hotch meet with him this morning so they could work out an official report to give to Assistant Director Strauss." JJ told him, sitting down next to Emily. "We're leaving almost as soon as you go home." She added and Ed made an 'ah' noise before taking another sip. They were pretty quiet, each sipping at their own coffees before Mustang stood up.

"I'm gonna go pack up anything of mine." He said, looking at Ed pointedly. Ed ignored him in favour of drinking more coffee.

"All my crap's already packed, Mustang, so stop staring at me." He told him after a few moments, causing Prentiss and JJ to giggle and Rossi to smirk into his coffee. Mustang rolled his eyes but left.

Once Ed had finished his coffee, he followed Mustang, tossing the cup in the bin on his way out. He snatched his bag off the chair he'd left it on while Mustang grabbed the last of his things and they both did a final once-over of the room before meeting up with the others again. Ed handed JJ the brush but held onto the book. He wanted to finish it before they left, if he could.

* * *

The drive to NCIS went quicker than it usually did but Ed gave the credit for that to him having something to do instead of staring out of the windows. By the time they passed through the security checkpoint, unloaded themselves from the car and headed into the building, it was a few minutes past 10:00am. DiNozzo, Ziva and McGee were all at their respective desks but their team leader wasn't anywhere in sight. Ed couldn't see Hotch or the other BAU members either.

"Mornin'." DiNozzo greeted, prompting his teammates to do the same. The greeting was echoed by the alchemists and BAU members present.

"Where is everyone?" Ed asked for the second time that morning.

"Our bossman and their bossman," he gestured to the BAU members, "are in a meeting with our big bossman. I believe Garcia dragged Agent Morgan down to cyber to pack all of her gear up and I'm not sure about Agent Reid." He admitted. Ziva rolled her eyes.

"Agent Reid went with Agent Hotchner to talk with Gibbs and Director Vance." She told him and DiNozzo snapped his fingers.

"That's right. Something about the kid's crazy memory being of help." He shrugged. Rossi, JJ and Prentiss nodded understandingly. "I was just about to head down to check on Moore if any of you want to come with." DiNozzo offered and Ed and Mustang immediately nodded. Rossi agreed to accompany them after exchanging looks with his teammates. Ed felt like that decision had something to do with the fact that he'd knocked Moore out before.

Ed couldn't believe his eyes when he was taken to the observation room. There was a little computer system set up to obviously record and monitor the interrogation room but it was unmanned and dark so Ed assumed it also wasn't on. But that's not what had Ed gobsmacked; that honour went to Moore himself.

The man was both cleaner and more disheveled than when Ed had last seen him. It was obvious someone had thrown him into a shower and he was now wearing a NCIS pants and sweatshirt, similar to what Ed had worn himself when he first got here. But his hair was lanky and greasy, his skin was pale and haggard, he had bloodshot and crazed eyes and his whole demeanour had Ed thinking of a caged animal ready to strike at anyone who came near. Ed could see the cast and bandages were clean so he assumed Ducky had been in to offer medical assistance. But the thing that Ed found most unbelievable was that Moore wasn't making a sound.

"Yeah, he actually yelled himself hoarse." DiNozzo told him when Ed had asked and Ed couldn't stop the laughter from bubbling up. Mustang looked amused as well.

"Are you for real?" Ed asked and DiNozzo nodded, an amused smirk forming because of Ed. "That's fucking great! He complained so much he lost his voice!" Ed cackled and they heard a faint growl coming from the other side of the glass. Ed looked at Moore, who was doing his best to snarl, and looked up at DiNozzo.

"McGee messed around with the intercom over there so it's on all the time now. He can hear whoever is in this room and we can hear him. Or we could until he lost his voice." Another growl came from the room. Ed snorted.

"You sound like a demented rabbit; knock it off." Ed told him and Moore recoiled at the insult. "It's not our fault you're locked in there. If you'd just accepted your brother was a scumbag who got what was coming for him, you wouldn't be in this mess and, most importantly, neither would we." Ed told him sternly.

"You'll get what's coming to you for murdering my brother." Moore's croaky voice snarled and Ed simply sighed resignedly.

"Stop talking. You sound like a three year old trying to be a demon." He told him before gesturing they leave. They could hear Moore muttering to himself as they did. "Glad to see his time in there hasn't affected his level of crazy." Ed said sarcastically.

"Why do you have to stir up every criminal you come across?" Mustang asked, letting out a long-suffering sigh.

"For shits and giggles." Ed deadpanned. He glanced at the nearest clock. "We got an hour and a half before Al opens up that portal. Do we need to do anything before than?" He asked the two agents who both shook their heads.

"No, I don't think so." Rossi told them as they got back to the others. Ed snatched up his Tolstoy novel and sat in the first empty chair he could find, found his page and started reading, ignoring the rest of the world.

"Does he know he's in Gibbs' chair?" DiNozzo asked as he sat at his own desk. He sounded a little afraid for Ed. Mustang shrugged.

"Probably not." He said unconcerned. "Just leave him be. Disturbing his reading when you're not Alphonse is not a good idea." Mustang told them and they hesitated before turning away to do their own thing. Not twenty minutes later, Gibbs, Hotch, Reid and Vance came down from the Director's office. Vance and Gibbs looked bemused to see Ed sitting at Gibbs' desk and Gibbs' team weren't the only ones who were anxious to see what Gibbs was going to do about it. To their surprise, Reid was the first one to move.

"Oh, hey, you're reading Tolstoy! What do you think to his work?" Reid asked Ed excitedly as he headed over to the desk. Mustang's jaw dropped when all Ed did was look up and smile at the interruption.

"He's really good! It's a fascinating read. I normally don't like fictional works but this is just so well written. I can see why it's a classic." Ed told him. "I mean, it took a little bit for me to translate the wording but Russian is pretty similar to Drachman so I had it worked out in no time." He told him and Reid looked thrilled. Before they could actually talk about the book in depth, Gibbs cleared his throat and looked pointedly at his desk. Ed looked back him for a moment before shrugging and heading over to the spare desk next to McGee's with Reid so they could talk about the book.

"Disturbing his reading when you're not Alphonse or Agent Reid is not a good idea." Mustang amended his previous statement to the amusement of the others.

* * *

As the time grew closer to when Al would attempt to open the portal again, everyone grew a little antsier. Ed was still nose-deep in 'War and Peace' but he was bouncing his right leg, a clear sign of nervousness. Mustang and the others made attempts at small talk but the conversations always fizzled out. Finally Ed put his book down.

"At what time did you send that note?" Ed asked Mustang.

"Near noon." Mustang reminded him and Ed shook his head.

"No, I mean the exact time. You can bet that one of your team checked their watch once Al had read that note out loud so they knew what time to open the portal again. I'm not going to risk Al, Teacher and whoever else holding that portal open for longer than absolutely necessary." Ed said and Mustang paled a little at what Ed was implying.

"I don't know. I never checked the time before I sent the note. I only saw the time when I got back in the car." Mustang admitted and Ed's eyes flashed dangerously.

"Mustang sent the note at 11:49. We should prepare for the portal to open at 11:50." Reid spoke up and Ed looked at him.

"At least someone was paying attention." He grouched and Mustang really wanted to point out how ironic it was that Ed was saying that. "It's nearly 11:00 now. We should get Moore at 11:40, gives us time to drag him the whole way into the car park if he's being difficult." Ed said decidedly. No one bothered to argue or question him. Once he realised there were no forthcoming comments or arguments, Ed went back to his book.

* * *

At 11:30, everyone started moving again. Reid got Ed's attention, after everyone basically saying he was probably the only one who could without getting a bone broken. The Director had gone back up to his office after Ed had moved chairs but was now back down with them so he could say goodbye to the BAU and the two alchemists. Finally, DiNozzo, Morgan and Ziva had disappeared to go and get Moore. The rest of them headed down to the car park, where they found Ducky and Abby waiting for them. Abby immediately swept Ed up into a hug.

"I'm gonna miss you!" She sniffled as she felt him hug her back. "It's been so much fun learning all about you and your world." Her voice started sounding a little watery.

"I'll miss you too, Miss Abby. Thank you for everything you taught me." He said sincerely, not at all surprised when she didn't release him just yet. She sniffled once more before letting him go and latching on to a very surprised Mustang. Ed laughed at him before he found himself in another hug, this time from Ducky. It was quick and Ed barely had time to give the older man his own hug before he was released.

"You take care of yourself, young man. Don't get yourself too hurt." He lectured, pointing a finger at the blonde.

"Thanks for patching me up, Doctor Mallard. I can't promise you that, though. I always seem to get sent on missions that result in me dealing with stupid criminals who refuse to surrender." Ed laughed and Ducky didn't look too impressed.

"Don't worry, Doctor. Edward's brother will be joining him on future missions and he is the more mature of the two." Mustang assured Ducky once Abby had let go of him. Ed flipped him off but Ducky seemed appeased by his words.

"If you two ever find yourself in this world again, don't hesitate to come see us." Ducky told them and Abby nodded enthusiastically.

"You have to promise that you'll see us if you end up back here." She demanded and Ed laughed at how serious she was.

"I promise." He said. Anything else that was going to be said was forgotten as Moore, Ziva, DiNozzo and Morgan appeared. As Ed thought, Moore was being difficult. DiNozzo and Morgan were literally dragging the man while Ziva brought up the rear. Despite the fact that Moore had damaged his voice, he was now screaming bloody murder.

"YOU CAN'T SEND ME BACK WITH THEM! THEY'LL KILL ME JUST LIKE THEY DID MY BROTHER! YOU CAN'T DO THIS TO ME! LET ME GO NOW!" He screeched but no one paid him any attention. DiNozzo and Morgan both looked two seconds away from punching him though. Moore's eyes found Mustang and Ed. "YOU TWO! YOU'RE TO BLAME FOR THIS!" He screeched and, before anyone could react, was running flat out at both of the alchemists.

DiNozzo and Morgan had obviously not expected the sudden change in pace as they both nearly fell over as Moore wrenched himself out of their grip. Mustang raised a hand to snap but Ed stood in his way. Bracing himself as Moore charge at him like a crazed lunatic, Ed brought his right arm up and, in one clean sweep, smashed his elbow into Moore's jaw, sending the would-be alchemist sprawling to the ground, howling as the pain from his now-broken jaw registered.

"Good job." Mustang said as he moved past the blonde to haul Moore back to his feet. The man was now ugly crying, trying to cradle his jaw as best he could, drool escaping since he couldn't close his jaws. Ducky went to step forward but Ed stopped him.

"We'll get him into a hospital in Amestris. The portal's about to open so you don't have time to do anything." He told him. Ducky didn't like it but he knew Edward was right so he stepped back.

JJ, Reid and Prentiss disappeared and reappeared a minute later with Ed and Mustangs bags. Ed accepted his, throwing the duffel over his shoulder and sticking his hand through the handle of the shopping bag. He looked at Mustang before accepting his bag, deciding he had his hands full enough as it was.

"Three minutes." Reid said and everyone seemed to go still for a moment before Mustang and Ed walked over to where the portal would open above them. Mustang had to drag Moore, who was now mumbling unintelligibly while crying. Everyone came up one or two at a time to say their goodbyes.

"It was a wonderfully unexpected surprise and I almost hope you get to come back one day." JJ said as she hugged both alchemists. Prentiss said almost the exact same thing when she hugged them.

"I hope you enjoy everything we got you. Some of the stuff in there is for Alphonse as well. Some of the stuff is things you can share with everyone." Garcia said as she hugged them goodbye, not even trying to pretend she wasn't crying. Ed was surprised at how emotional everyone was getting. "We're gonna miss you, you idiot! You're basically part of our weird little family!" Garcia scolded him when he mentioned it out loud.

"I'm glad to part of your family, Miss Penelope." He told her, laughing a little. The sincerity in his voice made Garcia cry a little harder.

"I put a few books I thought you'd like in your bag." Reid said, hesitated then hugged Ed, who returned it. "It was surreal seeing you two. It was nice having someone to talk to without worrying if I was boring them." He admitted.

"I learnt a lot from you, Doctor Reid. I'm glad we got to talk again." Reid grinned before reaching into his pocket and pulling out a familiar bag. Ed grabbed it a slipped it into one of his own pockets. "Thanks for holding onto that for me." He said and Reid nodded before moving to shake Mustang's hand.

"You and your weird science-magic can come back anytime, kid." Morgan grinned, ruffling Ed's hair as the boy scowled. Morgan pulled him into a brief hug. "I'm serious." He said, pulling away and Ed grinned.

"I have to say, it was a real trip meeting you two and learning about everything." DiNozzo said as he shook Ed's then Mustang's hands. "Make sure to hit us up if you're ever back in America. There's plenty of good, old, American foods I didn't get to show you." He winked at Ed, who laughed before DiNozzo was shoulder-barged out of the way by Ziva.

"Don't listen to that idiot. American food isn't that great." She said before enveloping Ed into a hug. "Thank you for saving me. Next time you're here, I'll cook even more food for you." She promised and Ed squeezed her back.

"Sounds like a plan, Miss Ziva." He smiled before she turned to Mustang, promising him food as well. McGee came up next and offered his hand. "Sorry for scaring you with that array in cyber." McGee winced at the memory.

"Yeah that was no fun. If we see each other again, you should try not to do that again." McGee half-joked and Ed grinned, shaking his hand.

"See you around, kiddo." Rossi smiled when he came up. Ed shook his hand, thanking him.

"Next time you decide to visit, maybe leave the homicidal alchemist back in Amestris? I think I'd like to see you two without one of them running around." Hotch said, completely straight-faced but the amusement in his eyes ruined it.

"We'll do our best." Mustang told him, shaking the man's hand.

"Thanks for coming down here so quickly when I turned up." Ed said, showing the tiniest bit of vulnerability. He had no clue how he would've reacted if he hadn't been able to contact them. Probably would've done something stupid like taken off.

"Of course. Just remember to call Garcia if you ever find yourself back here again." Hotch told him and Ed nodded before grasping Hotch's hand.

"The portal should be opening up any minute now." Reid said. Hotch headed back over to the group, who all moved a few more steps away.

"It was certainly an experience, meeting the two of you." Gibbs said, catching both of the alchemists eyes. "Like they all said; if you ever find yourself back here, give us a ring. We'll come find you." He told them. Both of them nodded.

"It was a pleasure meeting the both of you. I am glad NCIS was able to assist the two of you and the BAU in hunting down the fugitive. If we don't see you again, I hope everything on your end works out." Vance said.

"Thank you, Director Vance, for offering us somewhere to stay and for letting your agents help us locate and apprehend Moore." Mustang saluted him and Ed barely held back an eye-roll. Vance saluted back.

"Since Truth is a dick, this could possibly happen but if you ever find yourselves in Amestris, hit us up. Find the closest military person and tell them you need to see the Fullmetal Alchemist as soon as possible. Throw Mustang's name in there if you have to. Ask them to get you to Central City. They'll get word to us and we'll find you." Edward told them before grinning. "It'd give us a chance to pay you back for everything." He said just as he felt the air above him become overloaded with alchemic energy.

Both he and Mustang looked up and saw the sky over them waiver. Moore struggled to get away again but Mustang held him firm. Neither of them moved until the portal cleared up and they could see the warehouse ceiling on the other side. Ed found Alphonse immediately and his brother gave a relieved grin. He saw Teacher and Armstrong kneeling next to the portal, providing the portal with the extra power it needed.

"You good?" Ed asked Mustang who nodded and tightened his grip on Moore. Both of them looked back at the group of friends they were leaving behind and Ed waved before clapping his hands and using an array to transmute a pillar of stone to lift them up and through the portal. The moment they crossed the boundary of the portal, they felt like they'd taken a dip in ice water. Al waited until the stone had cleared the portal about an inch before calling for them to stop. All three alchemists immediately pulled their hands off the array and Ed's last view of the other dimension was of everyone waving up at them.

* * *

"Brother!" Alphonse called, racing for Ed and tackling him off the stone in a big hug. "You're okay!" He cried as Ed wrapped Al in his own hug.

"I'm back. I'm okay." He reassured his little brother who was now crying into his injured shoulder, causing Ed a little bit of pain but he didn't care. He was so glad to be home, so happy to be able to see and hold his brother again. He watched as Teacher was fussed over by Sig and felt a wave of relief that she and Armstrong were alright. The aforementioned State Alchemist used his own alchemy to send a crack through the array on the ground, breaking it's outer circle so it couldn't be used again.

Mustang was greeted by his own team. He got a clap on the shoulder from everyone and a stern yet relieved look from Hawkeye as he handed Moore over to Havoc and Falman, with instructions he be taken to the hospital immediately and for the two of them to meet him and Edward at Gracia's home for the debrief. They nodded and grabbed Moore, who was still wailing as best he could through his broken jaw, before hauling him out of the warehouse. Everyone still left made their way over to the Elric brothers.

"You two alright?" Ed asked Teacher and Armstrong as Al still clung to him.

"Exhausted but I'm fine." Teacher said, leaning on Sig a little more than normal.

"I, too, am alright." Armstrong boomed. "I am pleased that you and the Brigadier-General made it back unharmed." He told them joyfully.

"Well, I wouldn't say unharmed." Mustang said, a knowing look being tossed at Ed.

"I hate you so much." Ed hissed as Al abruptly pulled back.

"You're hurt?! How bad? Where?" He asked, already going into mother-hen mode as Ed glared daggers at a now-smirking Mustang.

"I'm fine. There was a doctor this time. He helped patch me up. I just got a few stitches and a lot of bruising." Ed promised him and Al looked like he wasn't sure he should believe him as he raked his eyes up and down Ed's body like he had x-ray vision and could see his injuries. "The only painful thing was hearing Mustang claim how good it was being away from all of his paperwork all the time." Ed told him, eyes flicking up to Mustang as a shit-eating grin tugged at his lips.

"Really? How interesting." Hawkeye said, eyes burning holes into Mustang's head as the man glared at Ed with all of the intensity he could muster.

"You're really okay?" Al asked and Ed's focus came back to him, even though he kinda wanted to watch Mustang try and convince Hawkeye it wasn't true.

"I really am." He swore and seemed to believe him. The rest of Mustang's team seemed to take this as permission for them to come over and welcome Ed back, clapping him on his automail shoulder and back when he flinched away from Breda trying to touch his left shoulder.

"You little idiot!" Teacher hissed as she wrapped Ed up in one of her rare hugs. "You went and worried everyone! Don't you dare do that again!" She warned him and Ed nodded.

"I'll do my best." He promised as he hugged her back before she released him and smacked him over the back of the head, earning her a yelp from him. Sig clapped one meaty hand on his automail shoulder and rumbled his own welcome back. Armstrong tried to take his shirt off from all of the joy he was feeling but Maria and Denny managed to get him to keep it on in-between saying hello to Edward.

Edward was certainly going to miss all of the friends he made in America but looking around the warehouse as Teacher glared at him while Sig looked at her lovingly; as Hawkeye stared at Mustang coolly while he tried to convince her Ed was lying; as Maria and Denny alternated between trying to keep Armstrong from ripping off his shirt and running away from his hugs as the tearful giant expressed his happiness; as Mustang's team watched all of this in amusement and as Al looked at him, so happy he was back; Ed knew he wouldn't give this up for anything even if he did have a worried Elysia, a very worried Winry and a very worried Gracia to confront still.

"Mustang, give up. She's not going to believe you." Ed hollered at him, causing the black-haired man to glare at him again while Hawkeye shot him an amused and relieved smirk.

"It's good to have you home, Edward." She said, shooting him a warm smile and Ed returned it.

"Yeah, I'm glad to be back. Let's head over to Gracia's now. We can tell you everything that happened this time." Ed said, grinning as he adjusted the bag he was still carrying. He followed everyone out of the warehouse, Al refusing to leave his side and clinging to his arm, and smiled as he felt the Amestrian sun on his skin. Yup, he was glad to be home.

 

**A/N - Thank you to everyone who has left comments on the second part of Agents Meet Alchemists. I have some good news to those of you who seem to love this series. I am currently writing a third installment for it! I won't be posting it for a little while. I want most of it written first and when I do start, it will be on a strict once a week update schedule. I'll be uploading another couple of Voltron stories, one of which is kinda connected to this series but only because I mention these stories in that one. The Criminal Minds and NCIS casts aren't actually in it. I look forward to seeing your responses to them and I'd love to hear what you thought of this story as a whole!**


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